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Informix Error -4085

-4085 Cannot output expression of this type.

The statement attempted to output an expression of a type that cannot be output, such as FOREIGN, or an expression that includes an invocation of a function that returns VOID.

Oninit® Troubleshooting Guidance

Reasons / Common Causes

-4085 fires when a statement tries to output an expression of a type that can't be output — per the official guidance, this includes FOREIGN values or an expression involving a function call that returns VOID.

  1. An output statement targeting a FOREIGN-typed expression, per the official guidance — the first named case.
  2. An output expression that includes a call to a VOID-returning function, per the official guidance — the second named case.
Solutions / Resolution
  1. Output a value of a supported type instead, converting or restructuring the expression as needed.
Examples
Outputting a VOID function's result
DISPLAY logEvent("started")
-- -4085: logEvent() returns VOID, which cannot be output
Corrected
CALL logEvent("started")
Diagnostic Checks
  1. Check the type of every expression being output, and confirm it isn't FOREIGN or the result of a VOID function call.
Related Errors / Related Topics
  • -4078 — "Operand is missing, or is of a type that is not supported." A related unsupported-type error, about general operator operands rather than output statements specifically.

An output statement targets a FOREIGN value or a VOID function's result, neither of which can be output — use a supported type instead.