Return default values for unset required fields instead of throwing#5
Merged
merlimat merged 1 commit intostreamnative:masterfrom May 8, 2026
Merged
Conversation
Previously, accessing an unset required field (proto2) would throw IllegalStateException. This breaks compatibility with standard Protobuf, which returns type-appropriate default values for any unset field regardless of whether it is required or optional. Required-field validation in Protobuf happens at build/serialize/parse time, not on every accessor call. Required field getters now return the same defaults as optional fields: - Numbers: 0 / 0L / 0.0 / 0.0f - Booleans: false - Strings: "" - Bytes: empty byte[] / empty ByteBuf - Enums: valueOf(0) - Messages: lazily-created empty instance writeTo() and parseFrom() still call checkRequiredFields() and throw IllegalStateException when a required field is missing, matching the existing behavior at the message boundary.
This file contains hidden or bidirectional Unicode text that may be interpreted or compiled differently than what appears below. To review, open the file in an editor that reveals hidden Unicode characters.
Learn more about bidirectional Unicode characters
Sign up for free
to join this conversation on GitHub.
Already have an account?
Sign in to comment
1 participant
Add this suggestion to a batch that can be applied as a single commit.This suggestion is invalid because no changes were made to the code.Suggestions cannot be applied while the pull request is closed.Suggestions cannot be applied while viewing a subset of changes.Only one suggestion per line can be applied in a batch.Add this suggestion to a batch that can be applied as a single commit.Applying suggestions on deleted lines is not supported.You must change the existing code in this line in order to create a valid suggestion.Outdated suggestions cannot be applied.This suggestion has been applied or marked resolved.Suggestions cannot be applied from pending reviews.Suggestions cannot be applied on multi-line comments.Suggestions cannot be applied while the pull request is queued to merge.Suggestion cannot be applied right now. Please check back later.
Summary
valueOf(0), lazily-created empty message) instead of throwingIllegalStateException. This matchesprotobuf-java, where unset required fields read back as defaults and validation only happens at build/serialize/parse boundaries.writeTo()andparseFrom()still callcheckRequiredFields()and throwIllegalStateExceptionwhen a required field is missing — only the per-field accessors changed.Test plan
RequiredTest.testUnsetRequiredReturnsDefaultasserting parity withprotobuf-javafor the getter, serialization, and deserialization pathsmvn -pl tests test— all 259 tests pass