Source data contains values longer than the column definition allows (e.g., VARCHAR(50) receiving 200-char strings). Schema was changed to reduce column length after data was already loaded. ETL pipeline does not validate or truncate strings before insert

Step 1: Identify the column with `\d+ ` and note the character limit.. Step 2: Add a transformation step in the pipeline to truncate or validate string length.. Step 3: Alternatively, alter the column to a larger size: `ALTER TABLE t ALTER COLUMN c TYPE VARCHAR(500);`.. Step 4: Audit source data for abnormally long values that indicate upstream data quality issues.

Medium severitydata format

Power BI Refresh Error:
22001

What does this error mean?

A string value is too long for the target column and was truncated (or the insert was rejected).

Common causes

1Source data contains values longer than the column definition allows (e.g., VARCHAR(50) receiving 200-char strings)
2Schema was changed to reduce column length after data was already loaded
3ETL pipeline does not validate or truncate strings before insert

How to fix it

1Step 1: Identify the column with `\d+ <table_name>` and note the character limit.
2Step 2: Add a transformation step in the pipeline to truncate or validate string length.
3Step 3: Alternatively, alter the column to a larger size: `ALTER TABLE t ALTER COLUMN c TYPE VARCHAR(500);`.
4Step 4: Audit source data for abnormally long values that indicate upstream data quality issues.

Frequently asked questions

How do I prevent 22001 errors in automated pipelines?

Add retry logic with exponential backoff, validate data quality before loading, and monitor pipeline failures in MetricSign to catch this error early.

Official documentation: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/errcodes-appendix.html