[GEODE-7394] Gfsh `configure pdx` command is non-intuitive and currently has a bad user experience

• Type: Bug
• Status: Open
• Priority: Major
• Resolution: Unresolved
• Component/s: serialization
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: John Blum
• Created: 31/Oct/19 17:31
• Updated: 01/Feb/22 19:54

Description

The Gfsh configure pdx command does not register a PdxSerializer (e.g. ReflectionBasedAutoSerializer, or otherwise) unless the --auto-serializable-classes option is explicitly specified. Without a PdxSerializer the command essentially serves no purpose nor has any effect. Effectively, the command is useless.

For example, doing something like `gfsh> configure pdx --read-serialized=false` or `gfsh> configure pdx --ignore-unread-fields` by itself is pointless since ultimately there would be no `PdxSerializer` registered in this case.

Gfsh should minimally register a `PdxSerializer` anytime the `configure pdx` command is used regardless of the options provided, especially if it returns successfully without incident. For instance, it could register the `ReflectionBaseAutoSerializer` with the REGEX .* (de/serializing all types, regardless of whether that is optimal or not).

Alternatively, if we decide not to register the ReflectionBasedAutoSerialier with a generic REGEX (e.g. .*), then we should fail-fast and the command should report that --[portable-]-auto-serializable-classes is required!