[8.15] ESQL: Fix for overzealous validation in case of invalid mapped fields (#111475)

docs/changelog/111475.yaml

@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+pr: 111475
+summary: "ESQL: Fix for overzealous validation in case of invalid mapped fields"
+area: ES|QL
+type: bug
+issues:
+ - 111452

docs/reference/esql/esql-multi-index.asciidoc

@@ -97,8 +97,7 @@ In addition, if the query refers to this unsupported field directly, the query f
 [source.merge.styled,esql]
 ----
 FROM events_*
-| KEEP @timestamp, client_ip, event_duration, message
-| SORT @timestamp DESC
+| SORT client_ip DESC
 ----
 
 [source,bash]
@@ -118,9 +117,8 @@ experimental::[]
 {esql} has a way to handle <<esql-multi-index-invalid-mapping, field type mismatches>>. When the same field is mapped to multiple types in multiple indices,
 the type of the field is understood to be a _union_ of the various types in the index mappings.
 As seen in the preceding examples, this _union type_ cannot be used in the results,
-and cannot be referred to by the query
--- except when it's passed to a type conversion function that accepts all the types in the _union_ and converts the field
-to a single type. {esql} offers a suite of <<esql-type-conversion-functions,type conversion functions>> to achieve this.
+and cannot be referred to by the query -- except in `KEEP`, `DROP` or when it's passed to a type conversion function that accepts all the types in
+the _union_ and converts the field to a single type. {esql} offers a suite of <<esql-type-conversion-functions,type conversion functions>> to achieve this.
 
 In the above examples, the query can use a command like `EVAL client_ip = TO_IP(client_ip)` to resolve
 the union of `ip` and `keyword` to just `ip`.

x-pack/plugin/esql-core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/xpack/esql/core/expression/Alias.java

@@ -115,6 +115,11 @@ public Nullability nullable() {
         return child.nullable();
     }
 
+    @Override
+    protected TypeResolution resolveType() {
+        return child.resolveType();
+    }
+
     @Override
     public DataType dataType() {
         return child.dataType();

x-pack/plugin/esql-core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/xpack/esql/core/expression/NamedExpression.java

@@ -55,6 +55,10 @@ public boolean synthetic() {
         return synthetic;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Try to return either {@code this} if it is an {@link Attribute}, or a {@link ReferenceAttribute} to it otherwise.
+     * Return an {@link UnresolvedAttribute} if this is unresolved.
+     */
     public abstract Attribute toAttribute();
 
     @Override

x-pack/plugin/esql-core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/xpack/esql/core/expression/TypeResolutions.java

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 import org.elasticsearch.xpack.esql.core.expression.Expression.TypeResolution;
 import org.elasticsearch.xpack.esql.core.type.DataType;
 import org.elasticsearch.xpack.esql.core.type.EsField;
+import org.elasticsearch.xpack.esql.core.type.InvalidMappedField;
 
 import java.util.Locale;
 import java.util.StringJoiner;
@@ -176,19 +177,60 @@ public static TypeResolution isType(
         ParamOrdinal paramOrd,
         String... acceptedTypes
     ) {
-        return predicate.test(e.dataType()) || e.dataType() == NULL
-            ? TypeResolution.TYPE_RESOLVED
-            : new TypeResolution(
-                format(
-                    null,
-                    "{}argument of [{}] must be [{}], found value [{}] type [{}]",
-                    paramOrd == null || paramOrd == DEFAULT ? "" : paramOrd.name().toLowerCase(Locale.ROOT) + " ",
-                    operationName,
-                    acceptedTypesForErrorMsg(acceptedTypes),
-                    name(e),
-                    e.dataType().typeName()
-                )
-            );
+        return isType(e, predicate, operationName, paramOrd, false, acceptedTypes);
+    }
+
+    public static TypeResolution isTypeOrUnionType(
+        Expression e,
+        Predicate<DataType> predicate,
+        String operationName,
+        ParamOrdinal paramOrd,
+        String... acceptedTypes
+    ) {
+        return isType(e, predicate, operationName, paramOrd, true, acceptedTypes);
+    }
+
+    public static TypeResolution isType(
+        Expression e,
+        Predicate<DataType> predicate,
+        String operationName,
+        ParamOrdinal paramOrd,
+        boolean allowUnionTypes,
+        String... acceptedTypes
+    ) {
+        if (predicate.test(e.dataType()) || e.dataType() == NULL) {
+            return TypeResolution.TYPE_RESOLVED;
+        }
+
+        // TODO: Shouldn't we perform widening of small numerical types here?
+        if (allowUnionTypes
+            && e instanceof FieldAttribute fa
+            && fa.field() instanceof InvalidMappedField imf
+            && imf.types().stream().allMatch(predicate)) {
+            return TypeResolution.TYPE_RESOLVED;
+        }
+
+        return new TypeResolution(
+            errorStringIncompatibleTypes(operationName, paramOrd, name(e), e.dataType(), acceptedTypesForErrorMsg(acceptedTypes))
+        );
+    }
+
+    private static String errorStringIncompatibleTypes(
+        String operationName,
+        ParamOrdinal paramOrd,
+        String argumentName,
+        DataType foundType,
+        String... acceptedTypes
+    ) {
+        return format(
+            null,
+            "{}argument of [{}] must be [{}], found value [{}] type [{}]",
+            paramOrd == null || paramOrd == DEFAULT ? "" : paramOrd.name().toLowerCase(Locale.ROOT) + " ",
+            operationName,
+            acceptedTypesForErrorMsg(acceptedTypes),
+            argumentName,
+            foundType.typeName()
+        );
     }
 
     private static String acceptedTypesForErrorMsg(String... acceptedTypes) {

x-pack/plugin/esql-core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/xpack/esql/core/expression/UnresolvedAttribute.java

@@ -96,6 +96,11 @@ public UnresolvedAttribute withUnresolvedMessage(String unresolvedMessage) {
         return new UnresolvedAttribute(source(), name(), qualifier(), id(), unresolvedMessage, resolutionMetadata());
     }
 
+    @Override
+    protected TypeResolution resolveType() {
+        return new TypeResolution("unresolved attribute [" + name() + "]");
+    }
+
     @Override
     public DataType dataType() {
         throw new UnresolvedException("dataType", this);

x-pack/plugin/esql-core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/xpack/esql/core/type/InvalidMappedField.java

@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
 import java.util.Objects;
 import java.util.Set;
 import java.util.TreeMap;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 
 /**
  * Representation of field mapped differently across indices.
@@ -64,6 +65,10 @@ private InvalidMappedField(StreamInput in) throws IOException {
         this(in.readString(), in.readString(), in.readImmutableMap(StreamInput::readString, i -> i.readNamedWriteable(EsField.class)));
     }
 
+    public Set<DataType> types() {
+        return typesToIndices.keySet().stream().map(DataType::fromTypeName).collect(Collectors.toSet());
+    }
+
     @Override
     public void writeTo(StreamOutput out) throws IOException {
         out.writeString(getName());

x-pack/plugin/esql/qa/testFixtures/src/main/resources/stats.csv-spec

@@ -1900,6 +1900,19 @@ M
 null
 ;
 
+shadowingInternalWithGroup2#[skip:-8.14.1,reason:implemented in 8.14]
+FROM employees
+| STATS x = MAX(emp_no), y = count(x) BY x = emp_no, x = gender
+| SORT x ASC
+;
+
+y:long | x:keyword
+    33 | F
+    57 | M
+     0 | null
+;
+
+
 shadowingTheGroup
 FROM employees
 | STATS gender = MAX(emp_no), gender = MIN(emp_no) BY gender