Spring form binding - use IllegalArgumentException message as error message

Question

I have a custom domain class with a single constructor that takes a String, as well as a toString() method. The constructor decodes the input string, performs validations on it and throws IllegalArgumentException if invalid.

I want to bind directly to this field, as described here: http://blog.springsource.org/2009/11/17/spring-3-type-conversion-and-validation/ (see 'Convention Over Configuration' section).

That is working fine & I am displaying the error message resolved by Spring (typeMismatch on barcodeInfo).

I know that I can customize this error message using a messageSource entry, e.g.

typeMismatch.barcodeInfo=Invalid format

However, the error message that I want to display isn't always the same, it depends on the value of the input string. Hence, I want to display the error message that I originally used in the IllegalArgumentException that I threw from the constructor. Is this possible?

I am specifically looking for a solution which will work with Spring WebFlow.

Pavel Horal · Accepted Answer · 2013-06-08 18:54:40Z

1

You might want to check BindingErrorProcessor used by WebDataBinder. There you can implement your own custom logic for translating exceptions to validation errors.

Notes:

You should implement your own exception (to be able to distinguish it from IllegalArgumentException thorwn by other components).
You can initialize WebDataBinder with your custom BindingErrorProcessor within your @InitBinder method (or set specific WebBindingInitializer to your handler adapter).

answered Jun 8, 2013 at 18:54

Pavel Horal

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1 Comment

Barry Pitman Over a year ago

Thank you for your answer - I updated the answer to specify that I am specifically looking for a solution for Spring WebFlow. Unfortunately, after more investigation, I don't think that it is possible. Hence, I'm accepting this answer, as it answers the initial question.

Shinichi Kai · Accepted Answer · 2013-06-09 07:57:17Z

As Pavel mentioned in his answer, you can achieve this by implementing BindingErrorProcessor.

It should look like this:

...
import org.springframework.validation.DefaultBindingErrorProcessor;
...

@Controller
public class YourController {

  ...

  @InitBinder
  public void initBinder(WebDataBinder binder) {
    binder.setBindingErrorProcessor(new DefaultBindingErrorProcessor() {
      @Override
      public void processPropertyAccessException(
          PropertyAccessException ex, BindingResult bindingResult) {
        if (ex.getPropertyName().equals("fieldInQuestion")) {
          Throwable cause = ex.getMostSpecificCause();

          FieldError fieldError;
          fieldError = new FieldError(
            bindingResult.getObjectName(),
            "fieldInQuestion",
            cause.getMessage());

          bindingResult.addError(fieldError);
        } else {
          super.processPropertyAccessException(ex, bindingResult);
        }
      }
    });
  }
}

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