Informix Error -1004: The selected ACCEPTKEY has been preassigned for ISQL.

Reasons / Common Causes

-1004 fires when ACCEPTKEY is set to a syntactically valid key that IBM Informix SQL (ISQL) already reserves for its own use — per the official guidance, this is distinct from -1003's malformed-value case; the value here is well-formed, just already taken.

1. ACCEPTKEY set to a key value ISQL reserves internally, per the official guidance — the direct, only cause.
2. A key value copied from another application's configuration without checking it against ISQL's own reserved set.

Solutions / Resolution

1. Choose a different key value for ACCEPTKEY, per the official guidance, one not already reserved by ISQL.

Examples

Choosing an unreserved key

$ export ACCEPTKEY=F1
-- -1004: illustrative — some Fn values are reserved by ISQL internally;
-- the official guidance doesn't enumerate which specific ones
$ export ACCEPTKEY=F9

Diagnostic Checks

1. Check ACCEPTKEY's current value and confirm it isn't one ISQL reserves internally.

Related Errors / Related Topics

• -1003 — "Invalid ACCEPTKEY set in the environment." A related ACCEPTKEY error, about a malformed value rather than a well-formed but reserved one.

The chosen ACCEPTKEY value is reserved for ISQL's own use — pick a different one.