confluentinc/confluent-kafka-python

KafkaError error strings are unicode on Windows when language is non-english

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#448 opened on Sep 19, 2018

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 (3 comments) (0 reactions) (0 assignees)Python (3,526 stars) (909 forks)batch import
buggood first issueinvestigate furtheros:windows

Description

Which messes up KafkaError__str__, assuming it has an ascii7 string.

Contributor guide

Tech stack
python
Domain
backend
Issue type
bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
stale
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
mostly clear
Prerequisites
PythonWindowsBasic debugging
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
30
Research direction
Investigate the KafkaError class in the Python client code (likely in the C extension layer) to understand how error strings are retrieved from librdkafka. The issue suggests that on Windows with non English locale, the error strings are Unicode, but the code assumes ASCII/bytes. Look at the str method and the underlying C bindings. Consider using Python's string handling to properly decode or convert the error message. Check if there are any existing tests for Windows encoding.