Informix Error -494

Reasons / Common Causes

-494 is the LC_CTYPE counterpart of -492: the variable is set, but to a value the server doesn't recognize as valid, whether it's LANG or LC_CTYPE.

1. A typo or misspelling in the LANG/LC_CTYPE value.
2. A locale string not supported by the server's NLS configuration, even if it's a valid locale name in general OS terms.
3. LC_COLLATE correctly configured (avoiding -492) but LC_CTYPE overlooked or mismatched.

Solutions / Resolution

1. Verify the exact value expected, per -493's guidance, for the specific NLS-enabled database being connected to.
2. Check for typos in the LANG/LC_CTYPE environment variable's current value.
3. Check both LC_COLLATE and LC_CTYPE together, since they're configured independently and fixing one doesn't guarantee the other is correct.

Examples

Checking current environment variable values

echo $LANG
echo $LC_CTYPE
-- compare against the exact value the target NLS-enabled
-- database actually requires

Diagnostic Checks

1. Check the current values of LANG and LC_CTYPE.
2. Compare against the specific value the target database's NLS configuration requires.

Related Errors / Related Topics

• -493 — "DBNLS not set (LC_CTYPE must be string_value)." The closely related sibling — that error covers a missing/unset variable, while this one covers a set-but-invalid value.
• -492 — "LANG or LC_COLLATE environment variable invalid." The identical underlying issue, for LC_COLLATE instead of LC_CTYPE.

Same diagnostic approach as -492 — verify the exact expected locale value for the specific NLS-enabled database, rather than assuming a generic OS locale string will work.