Error in Record ID: Too many fields

[DrewCroft]

I am encountering a strange error when executing a workflow to extract/transpose data from Excel:

Error: Record ID (6): Internal Error in RecordReader::ReadFields: Too many fields

The same workflow works fine when targeting other worksheets with the same layout.  I can't discern why this error would be happening.  I attempted to use the Record ID tool with all four data types, none seem to work. 

Attached are screenshots, a sample workflow, and a sample source workbook.  Each tool container is a different configuration of the same workflow.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[binuacs]

@DrewCroft Seems to be data issue. If I select without the range it is not showing any error

[DrewCroft]

That particular input (G3:I1000) is selecting metadata such as company name, category, and country.  All values were obfuscated for the example workbook, you'll see a naming convention of Company 001 or Country 01… this means there are string values on every row that are consistent.   The same was done for the cable_red worksheet, it shares the same structure as dth_red but it works fine.  

Can you elaborate on how this is a data issue?  I assume the Record ID tool simply assigned an incremented value to each row.  There are only 1000 rows and 3 columns.  It seems strange that the same range on a different worksheet works while this one does not.

[DrewCroft]

Is there some way to escalate this question or can someone explain how to debug this particular error?  I can't find any anomaly in the content of that worksheet that would throw off the tool.

[binuacs]

@DrewCroft I just copied your workflow into a new canvas and seems to be working fine

[DavidSkaife]

Hi @DrewCroft 

I can't with a definite answer comment why it's doing it, but, on the tabs that you're getting the error you have 'something' in the rows you're bringing through that is causing Alteryx to error.

As a 'fix' in Excel if you select all the rows after the data and delete them (even though they are blank), the workflow then runs ok and the error no longer appears...

[DrewCroft]

I kicked this issue down the road for as long as possible, now I need a solution.  I understand there is an issue in the characters used in the columns of the Excel workbook.  The data is coming from places like Mexico, Japan, Thailand, China, Russia, etc… so there are MANY instances of accent marks and punctuation.  I have no control over what is provided.  The file just gets dumped into a directory once a month and I need to parse it.

Are there tools I could insert into the workflow BEFORE the problematic areas that could clean this up?  

[nagakavyasri · Accepted solution]

@DrewCroft Unselect 'Use AMP Engine' in Runtime and run the workflow, it works fine

[jdminton · Accepted solution]

I see the error and did get Alteryx to tell me that there was something in the cells below your data (rows 402-1000) causing the issue. The attached workflow is a workaround since you can't control the data being received. I modified the input to only select the columns. By default it will select the rows with data. Since your headers are in row 2 for the columns to the right, I used dynamic rename to move those headers up. Try this and see if it helps.

[DrewCroft]

@jdminton & @nagakavyasri : I unchecked the option for AMP Engine on the workflow and it processed without tossing an error!  Ultimately, I need to get the owner of this file to clean it up but in the meantime this will be a sufficient workaround.  I'll need to upload this workflow to Alteryx Cloud, which I'm quite unfamiliar with.  Do you know if this option is available there?  Thanks very much for your help!