Fatal error during transformation: XPath expression containing '101' operators that exceeds the '100' limit set

[dreeves]

Hello,

When running one of my transforms, I get the following error:

JAXP0801002: the compiler encountered an XPath expression containing '101' operators that exceeds the '100' limit set by 'FEATURE_SECURE_PROCESSING'.

This error was introduced when I upgraded from Oxygen XML Editor 24.1 to 26.1. It seems that this error comes from new FEATURE_SECURE_PROCESSING, which Oracle introduced in a recent update of their Java.

jdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit Description: Limits the number of operators an XPath expression can contain. Default 100.

See: https://www.oracle.com/java/technologie ... notes.html

To fix the issue I need to add an argument like the following, but I do not know where to add it:

-Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=0 -Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=0 -Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=0 -

Has anyone else experienced this issue and do they know a solution?

Thank you,

D. Scott Reeves

[teo]

Hello Scott,

Please try the procedure described below to overcome that Java security limitation that's been enforced starting with newer JDK versions.
Locate the file "oxygen.vmoptions". It is usually located in the Oxygen installation folder.
Open it in a text editor and add the lines below:

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-Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=0
-Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=0
-Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=0

Then restart oXygen.
Setting these to 0 disables the limits, which is fine in a trusted environment.
If you're concerned about security, you can increase the limits instead of disabling them entirely:

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-Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=1000
-Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=100
-Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=2000

Best regards,
Teo

[dreeves]

Thanks so much for replying, Teo!

I tried updated the following files with the following lines, rebooted and reopened oXygen, but I am still getting the same '101' operators limit error when I run my transformation:

C:\Program Files\Oxygen XML Editor 26\oxygen26.1.vmoptions
C:\Program Files\Oxygen XML Editor 26\oxygenAuthor26.1.vmoptions
C:\Program Files\Oxygen XML Editor 26\oxygenDeveloper26.1.vmoptions

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-Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=0
-Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=0
-Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=0

I also tried with limits other than 0 to see if that would resolve the error:

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-Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=10000
-Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=1000
-Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=20000

Is there possibly another .vmoptions file that I need to update or a Java complier file that needs updating?

Thanks again,

D. Scott Reeves

[adrian]

Hi,

What kind of transformation are you running (XSLT, ANT, DITA)?
If the transformation is of type ANT, DITA-OT (or some other type that starts a java process), it's for that transformation scenario that you have to add the Java VM arguments (Edit the scenario, Advanced tab, JVM arguments).
If it's an XML/XSLT transformation (within Oxygen's Java process) then the .vmoptions is the way to go. I would have suggested to create custom_commons.vmoptions instead of the individual versioned .vmoptions, but that works just as well.
If you changed these, restart Oxygen and check if the properties got set in Help > About, System properties.

Regards,
Adrian

[dreeves]

Thanks replying, Adrian!

It is an ANT transformation. I currently have the following arguments in the JVM Arguments field of the transformation:

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-Xmx512m -Dxml.catalog.files=${xmlCatalogFilesList} 

When I add the additional arguments, like the example below, I get a new fatal error that I have never experienced before:

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-Xmx512m -Dxml.catalog.files=${xmlCatalogFilesList} -Djdk.xml.xpathExprOpLimit=10000 -Djdk.xml.xpathExprGrpLimit=1000 -Djdk.xml.xpathTotalOpLimit=20000

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System ID: C:\Availity\repositories\clp-content\source\portal_providers\release_communication\2025_07\_topics\c_aa_availity_essentials_transactions_payers.dita
Scenario: Create EDI/B2B release topics
Build file: C:\Availity\repositories\clp-content\build_resources\release_comm_edi_b2b_build.xml
Engine name: ANT
Severity: fatal
Description: Transformation failed. Fatal error during transformation using C:\Availity\repositories\clp-content\build_resources\create_edi_b2b_release_comm_topics.xsl: Error checking type of the expression 'FilterParentPath(variable-ref(raw_items/result-tree), step("descendant-or-self", 1))'.

Is my syntax incorrect in the JVM Arguments field or do I need to add another argument to fix the new error?

Thanks again,

D. Scott Reeves

[adrian]

Hi,

The syntax is correct. If the error message changed, you're probably on to the next issue.

Regards,
Adrian