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Description

Error 1033, 'Incorrect information in file: %s', signifies that MySQL encountered an issue reading a table's definition file (typically a .frm file). This usually occurs when the file is corrupted, incomplete, ironically named, or contains invalid metadata, preventing the database from accessing the table's structure.

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Error Message

Incorrect information in file: '%s'

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Known Causes

4 known causes

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Corrupted Table Definition File

The .frm file, which defines the table's structure, has become damaged or unreadable due to sudden power loss, hardware failure, or software bugs.

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Incomplete File Transfer or Copy

A table's .frm file was not fully copied or transferred, resulting in a truncated or partially written file that MySQL cannot parse correctly.

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Underlying Filesystem Corruption

Problems with the disk or filesystem itself can lead to data corruption within database files, making them appear malformed to MySQL.

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Manual Database File Manipulation

The .frm file was manually edited, moved, or deleted outside of MySQL's management, leading to inconsistencies and unreadable data.

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Solutions

4 solutions available

1. Rebuild the Corrupted Table medium

This solution involves recreating the table from scratch, which is effective if the table definition file is indeed malformed.

1

Identify the table causing the error. The error message '%s' usually contains the filename of the corrupted table.

2

Back up the data from the corrupted table. If you can still select data, do so. If not, you might need to attempt data recovery from the `.ibd` file (advanced).

SELECT * INTO OUTFILE '/path/to/backup/table_name.sql' FROM your_database.your_table;

3

Drop the corrupted table.

DROP TABLE your_database.your_table;

4

Recreate the table using its original `CREATE TABLE` statement. If you don't have it, you can try to infer it from the data backup or by using `SHOW CREATE TABLE` on a healthy replica if available. Alternatively, you can use `mysqldump` to get the schema.

SHOW CREATE TABLE your_database.your_table;
-- Then use the output to reconstruct the table definition.

5

Import the data back into the newly created table.

LOAD DATA INFILE '/path/to/backup/table_name.sql' INTO TABLE your_database.your_table;

2. Check and Repair Table Files (MyISAM) easy

For MyISAM tables, MySQL provides built-in repair utilities.

1

Identify the database and table name from the error message.

2

Connect to your MySQL server using the command-line client.

mysql -u your_user -p

3

Execute the `REPAIR TABLE` command. Replace `your_database` and `your_table` with your actual database and table names.

REPAIR TABLE your_database.your_table;

4

If the repair is successful, try accessing the table again.

3. Restart MySQL Server easy

A simple server restart can sometimes resolve transient file access issues or clear internal caches that might be causing this error.

1

Gracefully shut down the MySQL server.

sudo systemctl stop mysql  # For systemd-based systems (e.g., Ubuntu 15.04+, CentOS 7+)
# or
sudo service mysql stop  # For older SysVinit-based systems

2

Wait for the server to fully stop. You can check the process list to confirm.

ps aux | grep mysql

3

Start the MySQL server.

sudo systemctl start mysql  # For systemd-based systems
# or
sudo service mysql start  # For older SysVinit-based systems

4

Attempt to access the affected table again.

4. Inspect and Restore Table Files (InnoDB) advanced

For InnoDB tables, the `.ibd` file is crucial. Corruption here often requires more advanced recovery.

1

Locate the data directory of your MySQL installation. This is usually specified by the `datadir` variable in your `my.cnf` or `my.ini` configuration file.

2

Find the `.frm` (table definition) and `.ibd` (table data and indexes) files for the problematic table within the database's subdirectory.

3

If you have a recent backup of these files, stop the MySQL server, replace the corrupted files with the backup, and restart the server.

4

If no backup is available, consider using MySQL's built-in recovery features or third-party InnoDB recovery tools. This is a complex process that may involve exporting data from the corrupted `.ibd` file if possible.

5

Ensure that the MySQL server process has the necessary read/write permissions to the data directory and its contents.

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Related Errors

5 related errors

MySQL Error 1033: Malformed Table Definition