Informix Error -9971: Cannot determine the return types of a query or return types are inconsistent.
Cause and resolution
Cannot determine the return types of a query or return types are inconsistent.
The database server cannot determine the data type for one or more of the values that the query is to return.
Check the specification of the data type for each return value, correct any errors in the specification, and retry the query.
Oninit® Troubleshooting Guidance
Reasons / Common Causes
-9971 fires when the server can't determine the data type of one or more values a query returns — per the official guidance.
- An undetermined or inconsistent return-value data type, per the official guidance — the direct, only cause.
Solutions / Resolution
- Check the specification of the data type for each return value, per the official guidance.
- Correct any errors in the specification, and retry the query, per the official guidance.
Examples
N/A
No specific triggering statement is documented; the specific query varies.
Diagnostic Checks
- Check each return value's expected and actual data type, correcting any mismatch or ambiguity.
Related Errors / Related Topics
- -9970 — "Cannot determine host variable type during bind." A related type-inference error, on host variable binding rather than a query's overall return types.
The query's return types couldn't be determined or were inconsistent — check and correct each return value's data-type specification.