Informix Error -35221: Character string parameter cannot have an OUT mode: parameter name.

Cause and resolution

Character string parameter cannot have an OUT mode: parameter name.

CHAR(*) and VARCHAR(*) parameters cannot be used as OUT parameters. Change the parameter to CHAR[n].

Oninit® Troubleshooting Guidance

Reasons / Common Causes

-35221 fires when a CHAR(*) or VARCHAR(*) parameter is declared as an OUT parameter — per the official guidance, parameters using the unbounded (*) length form can't be used as OUT parameters.

A CHAR(*) or VARCHAR(*) parameter declared with OUT mode, per the official guidance — the direct, only cause.

Solutions / Resolution

Change the parameter to CHAR[n] (a fixed, bounded length), per the official guidance — the documented, only fix.

Examples

N/A

No specific triggering statement is documented beyond a CHAR(*)/VARCHAR(*) OUT parameter declaration.

Diagnostic Checks

Check the named parameter's declared type and mode — if it's CHAR(*)/VARCHAR(*) with OUT mode, switch it to a bounded CHAR[n].

Related Errors / Related Topics

-35205 — "Parameter parameter name already defined." Another parameter-declaration error.
-35215 — "Undefined host variable or parameter: name." Another parameter-related error.

An unbounded CHAR(*)/VARCHAR(*) parameter was declared as OUT, which isn't supported — change it to a bounded CHAR[n] instead.