Apache Hive HIVE_INVALID_DELETE error encountered when attempting to execute a DELETE statement.

What is Apache Hive HIVE_INVALID_DELETE error encountered when attempting to execute a DELETE statement.

Understanding Apache Hive

Apache Hive is a data warehouse software project built on top of Apache Hadoop for providing data query and analysis. Hive gives an SQL-like interface to query data stored in various databases and file systems that integrate with Hadoop. It is designed to manage and query large datasets residing in distributed storage.

Identifying the Symptom

When working with Apache Hive, you might encounter the HIVE_INVALID_DELETE error. This error typically occurs when attempting to execute a DELETE statement on a table, but the operation fails. The error message may look something like this:

FAILED: SemanticException [Error 10294]: Attempt to do update or delete using transaction manager that does not support these operations.

Exploring the Issue

What Causes HIVE_INVALID_DELETE?

The HIVE_INVALID_DELETE error is usually triggered by one of the following reasons:

The DELETE statement is syntactically incorrect. The table you are trying to delete from does not exist. The table is not transactional, and Hive is not configured to support DELETE operations on non-transactional tables.

Understanding Hive's DELETE Limitations

In Hive, DELETE operations are only supported on transactional tables. If your table is not transactional, attempting a DELETE operation will result in an error. Ensure that your table is created with the TRANSACTIONAL property set to TRUE.

Steps to Fix the Issue

Verify Table Existence

First, ensure that the table you are trying to delete from actually exists. You can verify this by running the following command:

SHOW TABLES;

If your table does not appear in the list, you need to create it or check for any typographical errors in your DELETE statement.

Ensure Correct DELETE Syntax

Make sure your DELETE statement is correctly formatted. A typical DELETE statement in Hive looks like this:

DELETE FROM table_name WHERE condition;

Ensure that the table name and condition are correctly specified.

Check Table Transactional Properties

To perform DELETE operations, your table must be transactional. You can check if a table is transactional by running:

DESCRIBE FORMATTED table_name;

Look for the transactional property. If it is set to FALSE, you need to recreate the table with transactional properties enabled:

CREATE TABLE table_name (...)CLUSTERED BY (column_name) INTO num_buckets BUCKETSSTORED AS ORCTBLPROPERTIES ('transactional'='true');

Configure Hive for Transactions

Ensure that Hive is configured to support transactions. This involves setting the following properties in your hive-site.xml:

<property> <name>hive.support.concurrency</name> <value>true</value></property><property> <name>hive.txn.manager</name> <value>org.apache.hadoop.hive.ql.lockmgr.DbTxnManager</value></property><property> <name>hive.compactor.initiator.on</name> <value>true</value></property><property> <name>hive.compactor.worker.threads</name> <value>1</value></property>

Additional Resources

For more information on Hive transactions and DELETE operations, you can refer to the official Hive Language Manual. Additionally, the Hive Transactions documentation provides a comprehensive guide on setting up and using transactions in Hive.