[Bug] TestCreateTable.test_create_table_name_too_short

[pdf-amzn]

Describe the bug

devtools/run-tests --extenddb --pytest has one failure in v0.1.0

=================================== FAILURES ===================================
_______________ TestCreateTable.test_create_table_name_too_short _______________

self = <test_table_operations.TestCreateTable object at 0xffff808023c0>
dynamodb_client = <botocore.client.DynamoDB object at 0xffff807f6690>

    def test_create_table_name_too_short(self, dynamodb_client):
        # botocore validates table name min length (3) client-side, raising
        # ParamValidationError before the request reaches the server.
        from botocore.exceptions import ParamValidationError
    
        with pytest.raises(ParamValidationError):
>           dynamodb_client.create_table(
                TableName="ab",
                AttributeDefinitions=[{"AttributeName": "pk", "AttributeType": "S"}],
                KeySchema=[{"AttributeName": "pk", "KeyType": "HASH"}],
                BillingMode="PAY_PER_REQUEST",
            )

[olcortesb]

Hi @pdf-amzn, I reviewed and probe this test and I think, the issue is that botocore removed client-side validation for minimum table name length between versions. The pinned version (1.33.13) validates client-side, but newer versions don't.

I verified this by testing whether botocore raises ParamValidationError before attempting a connection:

from botocore.exceptions import ParamValidationError
import botocore
import boto3

print('botocore version:', botocore.__version__)

# The ":1" is to force the error
client = boto3.client('dynamodb', region_name='us-east-1', endpoint_url='http://localhost:1')
try:
    client.create_table(
        TableName='ab',
        AttributeDefinitions=[{'AttributeName': 'pk', 'AttributeType': 'S'}],
        KeySchema=[{'AttributeName': 'pk', 'KeyType': 'HASH'}],
        BillingMode='PAY_PER_REQUEST',
    )
except ParamValidationError as e:
    print('ParamValidationError raised (client-side validation exists)')
except Exception as e:
    print(f'Other exception: {type(e).__name__}: {e}')

With pinned version (boto3==1.33.13):

botocore version: 1.33.13
ParamValidationError raised (client-side validation exists)

With newer version (botocore 1.42.43):

botocore version: 1.42.43
Other exception: EndpointConnectionError: Could not connect to the endpoint URL: "http://localhost:1/"

This is mi local version ...

~/workspace/extenddb (main)$ python3 -c "import botocore; print(botocore.__version__)"
1.42.43

I think, this confirms that botocore 1.33.13 validates client-side, but 1.42.43 skips it and sends the request directly.

When the request reaches the server, ExtendDB correctly rejects it with ValidationException: Member must have length greater than or equal to 3.

May be The fix should make the test accept both behaviors: ParamValidationError (client-side) or ClientError with ValidationException (server-side), so it works regardless of botocore version (old and new).

for example ...

def test_create_table_name_too_short(self, dynamodb_client):
    from botocore.exceptions import ParamValidationError

    with pytest.raises((ParamValidationError, ClientError)) as exc_info:
        dynamodb_client.create_table(
            TableName="ab",
            AttributeDefinitions=[{"AttributeName": "pk", "AttributeType": "S"}],
            KeySchema=[{"AttributeName": "pk", "KeyType": "HASH"}],
            BillingMode="PAY_PER_REQUEST",
        )
    # If server-side validation, verify it's the correct error
    if isinstance(exc_info.value, ClientError):
        assert exc_info.value.response["Error"]["Code"] == "ValidationException"

This is the output:

~/workspace/extenddb (main)$ pytest tests/test_table_operations.py::TestCreateTable::test_create_table_name_too_short -v
======================================= test session starts ========================================
platform linux -- Python 3.9.19, pytest-8.3.4, pluggy-1.5.0 -- /home/olcortesb/.pyenv/versions/3.9.19/bin/python3.9
cachedir: .pytest_cache
rootdir: /home/olcortesb/workspace/extenddb
configfile: pytest.ini
collected 1 item                                                                                   

tests/test_table_operations.py::TestCreateTable::test_create_table_name_too_short PASSED     [100%]

========================================= warnings summary =========================================
tests/test_table_operations.py::TestCreateTable::test_create_table_name_too_short
  /home/olcortesb/.pyenv/versions/3.9.19/lib/python3.9/site-packages/boto3/compat.py:89: PythonDeprecationWarning: Boto3 will no longer support Python 3.9 starting April 29, 2026. To continue receiving service updates, bug fixes, and security updates please upgrade to Python 3.10 or later. More information can be found here: https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/developer/python-support-policy-updates-for-aws-sdks-and-tools/
    warnings.warn(warning, PythonDeprecationWarning)

tests/test_table_operations.py::TestCreateTable::test_create_table_name_too_short
  /home/olcortesb/.pyenv/versions/3.9.19/lib/python3.9/site-packages/urllib3/connectionpool.py:1064: InsecureRequestWarning: Unverified HTTPS request is being made to host '127.0.0.1'. Adding certificate verification is strongly advised. See: https://urllib3.readthedocs.io/en/1.26.x/advanced-usage.html#ssl-warnings
    warnings.warn(

-- Docs: https://docs.pytest.org/en/stable/how-to/capture-warnings.html
================================== 1 passed, 2 warnings in 0.24s ===================================
~/workspace/extenddb (main *)$

I'd like to submit a PR with the fix if that works for you.

[pdf-amzn]

I have an outstanding change that, for this and several other test cases, reconfigures the boto client to explicitly disable client-side validations, which I think will produce more accurate tests. Thanks for the diagnosis!

[pdf-amzn]

If you're curious...see

extenddb/tests/conftest.py

Line 50 in 140a1e5

def dynamodb_client_no_validation(endpoint_url: str | None):

[olcortesb]

If you're curious...see

extenddb/tests/conftest.py

Line 50 in 140a1e5

def dynamodb_client_no_validation(endpoint_url: str | None):

Thanks for the comment.
It seems interesting to decouple the validation from the client side. I’ll take a look at it