I find myself wishing I had a list of all the jiras / issues that have
been put off for a 2.0 release because they required some change or another
:(

From: Joe Witt <[email protected]> <[email protected]>
Reply: [email protected] <[email protected]> <[email protected]>
Date: July 27, 2021 at 12:30:35
To: [email protected] <[email protected]> <[email protected]>
Subject:  Re: [DISCUSS] NiFi 2.0 Release Goals

A few thoughts:

1. I would love to see deprecation notices show up in the UI in
various ways to help motivate users to move off things to more
supportable things. That is not a prerequisite for anything happening
however. Just a good feature/nice thing to do for users when someone
is able to tackle it.

2. The decision to deprecate something and to further remove it need
not mean there is a superior solution available. If that thing itself
isn't getting the love/attention it needs to be
maintained/supported/healthy going forward that alone is enough to
remove it. That might well be the case with PostHTTP [1] and for
comparison you can see how much effort has gone into InvokeHTTP [2].

3. When discussing a 2.0 release each thing we add as a 'must do' the
further away from reality such a release will become. We'll have to
get very specific about 'musts' vs 'wants'.

[1]
https://github.com/apache/nifi/commits/11e9ff377333784974fa55f41483c4281d80da50/nifi-nar-bundles/nifi-standard-bundle/nifi-standard-processors/src/main/java/org/apache/nifi/processors/standard/PostHTTP.java
[2]
https://github.com/apache/nifi/commits/cc554a6b110dfa45767bcb13d834ea4265d6dfe6/nifi-nar-bundles/nifi-standard-bundle/nifi-standard-processors/src/main/java/org/apache/nifi/processors/standard/InvokeHTTP.java

On Tue, Jul 27, 2021 at 8:47 AM David Handermann
<[email protected]> wrote:
>
> Thanks Mark, providing a template or comparison statistics with Java
> versions and component configuration details would be very helpful. If it
> is possible to run tests using a public API or deployable service, that
> would also help confirm potential differences.
>
> Showing a deprecation notice in the UI could be helpful, perhaps as a
> configurable option. NIFI-8650 describes a general Flow Analysis
> capability, and it seems like that might be one possible way to surface
> deprecation warnings. For something more specific to component
deprecation,
> it seems important to find a balance between making it obvious and making
> it something that ends up getting ignored.
>
> Regards,
> David Handermann
>
> On Tue, Jul 27, 2021 at 10:28 AM Mark Bean <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > I'll start a new thread for PostHTTP when I get a template and/or
detailed
> > stats.
> >
> > I know the deprecation is noted in the documentation. That's a
necessary
> > and minimum level of notification. I was suggesting it be more obvious
in
> > the UI. I think it would be beneficial to somehow be aware of the
> > deprecation status simply by looking at the flow (perhaps even on the
> > summary pages too), and without having to open the documentation for
every
> > processor to confirm whether or not a component is marked as
deprecated.
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Mark
> >
> >
> > On Tue, Jul 27, 2021 at 11:16 AM David Handermann <
> > [email protected]> wrote:
> >
> > > Mark,
> > >
> > > Thanks for the feedback. It may be better to start a separate thread
on
> > > PostHTTP, but can you provide an example flow demonstrating the
> > performance
> > > differences between PostHTTP and InvokeHTTP?
> > >
> > > PostHTTP uses the Apache HttpComponents library, whereas InvokeHTTP
uses
> > > OkHttp. NiFi 1.13.2 and 1.14.0 included major version updates for
OkHttp,
> > > so it would be important to test with the most recent version. It is
also
> > > worth noting that test classes for PostHTTP are now integration tests
as
> > > opposed to unit tests, which means they are not executed as part of
the
> > > automated builds.
> > >
> > > The NiFi documentation includes the contents of the DeprecationNotice
for
> > > PostHTTP:
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
https://nifi.apache.org/docs/nifi-docs/components/org.apache.nifi/nifi-standard-nar/1.14.0/org.apache.nifi.processors.standard.PostHTTP/index.html
> > >
> > > Regards,
> > > David Handermann
> > >
> > > On Tue, Jul 27, 2021 at 9:56 AM Mark Bean <[email protected]>
wrote:
> > >
> > > > I'm strongly in favor of reducing tech debt, and moving
deliberately
> > to a
> > > > 2.0 release. I have a concern with just one processor that is
currently
> > > > marked as deprecated: PostHTTP. (I have not evaluated specifically
any
> > > > other deprecated components; I cannot say if there are or are not
> > similar
> > > > issues elsewhere.) I understand the rationale for deprecating this
> > > > processor in that it eliminates a processor whose functionality is
> > > > available elsewhere, specifically in the more flexible InvokeHTTP.
> > > However,
> > > > in my experience and testing, PostHTTP performs transfers with far
> > > greater
> > > > throughput than InvokeHTTP. I would not be in favor of removing
> > PostHTTP
> > > > unless/until InvokeHTTP is refactored to increase its throughput
> > > > capability.
> > > >
> > > > Has anyone else continued to use PostHTTP over InvokeHTTP for
similar
> > > > reasons? Or, is there a performance-related configuration for
> > InvokeHTTP
> > > I
> > > > may have missed?
> > > >
> > > > Also, in order to help facilitate a smooth transition to 2.0 from a
> > user
> > > > perspective, would it be advisable to add some sort of visual
indicator
> > > in
> > > > the UI for components that are currently annotated as @Deprecated?
This
> > > > might help users proactively modify their flow prior to a release
that
> > > > would otherwise break it.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > On Mon, Jul 26, 2021 at 5:02 PM Bryan Bende <[email protected]>
wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > With the merging of MiNiFi and registry into the NiFi repo, we've
> > > > > actually gone more towards a mono-repo where everything is
released
> > > > > together. Eventually it would still be nice to have a smaller
base
> > > > > distribution containing just the framework and standard NARs, but
it
> > > > > is hard to tackle that until we provide a way for users to easily
> > > > > obtain the NARs in some other way.
> > > > >
> > > > > On Mon, Jul 26, 2021 at 4:20 PM Edward Armes <
[email protected]
> > >
> > > > > wrote:
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Given the major version number shift and the spliting up of
> > > processors
> > > > > into
> > > > > > multiple NAR's. I'd like to suggest that we start individually
> > > > versioning
> > > > > > individual NARs/ bundles.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > I can see this bringing a large number of benifits including
making
> > > > Nifi
> > > > > > more deployable with things RPM, but also potentially allowing
> > those
> > > > that
> > > > > > have to deploy managed Nifi instances easier to upgrade.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Edward
> > > > > >
> > > > > > On Mon, 26 Jul 2021, 20:42 Otto Fowler, <[email protected]>

> > > > wrote:
> > > > > >
> > > > > > > The issue with updating the aws sdk is if it breaks any one
of
> > the
> > > > > > > processors.
> > > > > > > the Web Gateway API invoke processor for example is not using
a
> > > high
> > > > > level
> > > > > > > purpose build client and may break.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > If we change the aws version, we need to coordinate in such a
way
> > > > that
> > > > > they
> > > > > > > all
> > > > > > > can come along reasonably.
> > > > > > > IE: what happens if 1 or 2 break but the rest or OK?
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > From: David Handermann <[email protected]>
> > > > > > > <[email protected]>
> > > > > > > Reply: [email protected] <[email protected]> <
> > > > [email protected]>
> > > > > > > Date: July 26, 2021 at 09:33:42
> > > > > > > To: [email protected] <[email protected]> <
> > [email protected]
> > > >
> > > > > > > Subject: Re: [DISCUSS] NiFi 2.0 Release Goals
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Chris,
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Thanks for the reply and recommendations. It seems like some
of
> > the
> > > > > work to
> > > > > > > reorganize the module structure could be done outside of a
major
> > > > > release,
> > > > > > > but it would be great to target any breaking changes for 2.0.
> > > > Perhaps a
> > > > > > > separate feature proposal on module restructuring, with the
goal
> > of
> > > > > > > supporting optimized builds, would be a helpful way to move
that
> > > part
> > > > > of
> > > > > > > the discussion forward.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Regarding updating AWS SDK to version 2, it seems like that
might
> > > be
> > > > > > > possible now. I haven't taken a close look at the referencing
> > > > > components,
> > > > > > > so I'm not sure about the level of effort involved. Minor
NiFi
> > > > version
> > > > > > > updates have incorporated major new versions of dependencies.
For
> > > > > example,
> > > > > > > NiFi 1.14 included an upgrade from Spring Framework 4 to 5.
On
> > the
> > > > one
> > > > > > > hand, including the AWS SDK update as part of a major release
> > seems
> > > > > > > helpful, but unless there are changes that break existing
> > component
> > > > > > > properties, upgrading the AWS SDK could be worked
independently.
> > > > > Others may
> > > > > > > have more insight into particular usage of that library.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Regards,
> > > > > > > David Handermann
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > On Sun, Jul 25, 2021 at 2:12 AM Chris Sampson
> > > > > > > <[email protected]> wrote:
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > Might be worth considering refactoring the build as part of
> > this
> > > > work
> > > > > > > too,
> > > > > > > > e.g. only building the bits of the repo affected by a
commit,
> > > etc.
> > > > -
> > > > > > > > discussed briefly in previous threads but don't think any
> > changes
> > > > > made
> > > > > > > yet.
> > > > > > > > If NARs/components are likely to be split up and refactored
> > then
> > > > such
> > > > > > > work
> > > > > > > > around the build probably makes sense to consider.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > I've a couple of PRs open that include updates to
Elasticsearch
> > > > > versions
> > > > > > > > already, although I stopped at 7.10.2 (after which Elastic
> > > changed
> > > > > > > licence)
> > > > > > > > in case there were licence concerns. But more work can be
done
> > to
> > > > > tidy up
> > > > > > > > the processors, absolutely.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > AWS libraries to v2 would seem a sensible move and a
refactor
> > of
> > > > > those
> > > > > > > > processors as well.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > Cheers,
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > Chris Sampson
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > On Sat, 24 Jul 2021, 17:47 David Handermann, <
> > > > > > > [email protected]>
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > Thanks for pointing out the standard NAR bundles, Mark.
There
> > > > are a
> > > > > > > > number
> > > > > > > > > of components in the standard NAR bundles with particular
> > > > > dependencies
> > > > > > > > that
> > > > > > > > > would make more sense in separate NARs. Reorganizing the
> > > standard
> > > > > NAR
> > > > > > > to
> > > > > > > > > components with limited dependencies and wide
applicability
> > > would
> > > > > > > > > definitely help with future maintenance.
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > Regards,
> > > > > > > > > David Handermann
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > On Sat, Jul 24, 2021 at 10:57 AM Mark Payne <
> > > > [email protected]>
> > > > > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > There’s also some code that exists in order to maintain
> > > > backward
> > > > > > > > > > compatibility in the repositories. I would very much
like
> > the
> > > > > > > > > repositories
> > > > > > > > > > to contain no unnecessary code. And swap file format
> > supports
> > > > > really
> > > > > > > > old
> > > > > > > > > > formats. And the old impls of the repositories
themselves,
> > > like
> > > > > > > > > > PersistentProvRepo instead of WriteAheadProv Repo, etc.
> > Lots
> > > of
> > > > > stuff
> > > > > > > > > there
> > > > > > > > > > that can be removed. And some methods in ProcessSession
> > that
> > > > are
> > > > > > > never
> > > > > > > > > used
> > > > > > > > > > by any processor in the codebase but exists in the
public
> > API
> > > > so
> > > > > > > can’t
> > > > > > > > be
> > > > > > > > > > removed till 2.0.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > I think his is also a great time to clean up the
“standard
> > > > nar.”
> > > > > At
> > > > > > > > this
> > > > > > > > > > point, it’s something like 70 MB. And many of the
> > components
> > > > > there
> > > > > > > are
> > > > > > > > > not
> > > > > > > > > > really “standard” - things like connecting to FTP &
SFTP
> > > > > servers, XML
> > > > > > > > > > processing, Jolt transform, etc. could potentially be
moved
> > > > into
> > > > > > > other
> > > > > > > > > > nars. The
nifi-standard-content-viewer-1.15.0-SNAPSHOT.war
> > is
> > > > > 6.9 MB
> > > > > > > is
> > > > > > > > > not
> > > > > > > > > > necessary for stateless or minifi java. Lots of things
> > > probably
> > > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > reconsider within the standard nar.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > I definitely think this is a reasonable approach, to
allow
> > > for
> > > > a
> > > > > 2.0
> > > > > > > > that
> > > > > > > > > > is not a huge feature release but allows the project to
be
> > > > > simpler
> > > > > > > and
> > > > > > > > > more
> > > > > > > > > > nimble.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Thanks
> > > > > > > > > > -Mark
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Jul 24, 2021, at 10:59 AM, Mike Thomsen <
> > > > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > > > <mailto:
> > > > > > > > > > [email protected]>> wrote:
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Russell,
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > AFAICT from looking at Elastic's repos, the low level
REST
> > > > > client is
> > > > > > > > > > still fine.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
https://github.com/elastic/elasticsearch/blob/e5518e07f13701e3bb3dcc6842b9023966752497/client/rest/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/client/RestClient.java
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Our Elasticsearch support is spread over two NARs at
> > present.
> > > > One
> > > > > > > uses
> > > > > > > > > > OkHttp and the other uses that low level Elastic REST
> > client.
> > > > > > > > > > Therefore, I think we're fine on licensing for the
moment.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Mike
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 1:10 PM Russell Bateman <
> > > > > > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > > > > <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Bringing up Elastic also reminds me that the Elastic
> > > framework
> > > > > has
> > > > > > > just
> > > > > > > > > > recently transitioned out of Open Source, so to
acknowledge
> > > > that,
> > > > > > > maybe
> > > > > > > > > > some effort toward OpenSearch--I say this not
understanding
> > > > > exactly
> > > > > > > how
> > > > > > > > > > this sort of thing is considered in a large-scale,
> > > world-class
> > > > > > > software
> > > > > > > > > > project like Apache NiFi. (I'm not a contributor, just
a
> > > > grateful
> > > > > > > > > > consumer.)
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Russ
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On 7/23/21 10:28 AM, Matt Burgess wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > Along with the itemized list for ancient components we
> > should
> > > > > look at
> > > > > > > > > > updating versions of drivers, SDKs, etc. for external
> > systems
> > > > > such as
> > > > > > > > > > Elasticsearch, Cassandra, etc. There may be breaking
> > changes
> > > > but
> > > > > 2.0
> > > > > > > > > > is probably the right time to get things up to date to
make
> > > > them
> > > > > more
> > > > > > > > > > useful to more people.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 12:21 PM Nathan Gough <
> > > > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > > > <mailto:
> > > > > > > > > > [email protected]>> wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > I'm a +1 for removing pretty much all of this stuff.
There
> > > are
> > > > > > > security
> > > > > > > > > > implications to keeping old dependencies around, so the
> > more
> > > > old
> > > > > code
> > > > > > > > we
> > > > > > > > > > can remove the better. I agree that eventually we need
to
> > > move
> > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > supporting only Java 11+, and as our next release will
> > > probably
> > > > > be
> > > > > > > > about
> > > > > > > > > 4
> > > > > > > > > > - 6 months from now that doesn't seem too soon. We
could
> > > > > potentially
> > > > > > > > > break
> > > > > > > > > > this in two and remove the deprecated processors and
leave
> > > 1.x
> > > > on
> > > > > > > Java
> > > > > > > > 8,
> > > > > > > > > > and finally start on 2.x which would support only Java
11.
> > > I'm
> > > > > unsure
> > > > > > > > of
> > > > > > > > > > what implications changing the date and time handling
would
> > > > have
> > > > > -
> > > > > > > for
> > > > > > > > > > running systems that use long term historical logs,
> > > unexpected
> > > > > > > impacts
> > > > > > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > time logging could be a problem.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > As Joe says I think feature work will have to be
dedicated
> > to
> > > > > 2.x and
> > > > > > > > we
> > > > > > > > > > could support 1.x for security fixes for some period of
> > time.
> > > > 2.x
> > > > > > > seems
> > > > > > > > > > like a gargantuan task but it's probably time to get
> > started.
> > > > Not
> > > > > > > sure
> > > > > > > > > how
> > > > > > > > > > we handle all open PRs and the transition between 1.x
and
> > > 2.x.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 10:57 AM Joe Witt <
> > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > <mailto:
> > > > > > > > > > [email protected]>> wrote:
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Jon
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > You're right we have to be careful and you're right
there
> > are
> > > > > still
> > > > > > > > > > significant Java 8 users out there. But we also have to
be
> > > > > careful
> > > > > > > > > > about security and sustainability of the codebase. If
we
> > had
> > > > > talked
> > > > > > > > > > about this last year when that article came out I'd
have
> > > agreed
> > > > > it is
> > > > > > > > > > too early. Interestingly that link seems to get updated
> > and I
> > > > > tried
> > > > > > > > > > [1] and found more recent data (not sure how recent).
> > Anyway
> > > it
> > > > > > > > > > suggests Java 8 is still the top dog but we see good
growth
> > > on
> > > > > 11. In
> > > > > > > > > > my $dayjob this aligns to what I'm seeing too.
Customers
> > > didn't
> > > > > seem
> > > > > > > > > > to care about Java 11 until later half last year and
now
> > > > > suddenly it
> > > > > > > > > > is all over the place.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > I think once we put out a NiFi 2.0 release we'd see
rapid
> > > > > decrease in
> > > > > > > > > > work on the 1.x line just being blunt. We did this many
> > years
> > > > ago
> > > > > > > > > > with 0.x to 1.x and we stood behind 0.x for a while
(maybe
> > a
> > > > > year or
> > > > > > > > > > so) but it was purely bug fix/security related bits. We
> > would
> > > > > need to
> > > > > > > > > > do something similar. But feature work would almost
> > certainly
> > > > go
> > > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > the 2.x line. Maybe there are other workable models but
my
> > > > > instinct
> > > > > > > > > > suggests this is likely to follow a similar path.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > ...anyway I agree it isn't that easy of a call to dump
Java
> > > 8.
> > > > We
> > > > > > > > > > need to make the call in both the interests of the user
> > base
> > > > and
> > > > > the
> > > > > > > > > > contributor base of the community.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > [1] https://www.jetbrains.com/lp/devecosystem-2021/java/
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Thanks
> > > > > > > > > > Joe
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 7:46 AM Joe Witt <
> > [email protected]
> > > > > <mailto:
> > > > > > > > > > [email protected]>> wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > Russ
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Yeah the flow registry is a key part of it. But also
now
> > you
> > > > can
> > > > > > > > > > download the flow definition in JSON (upload i think is
> > there
> > > > now
> > > > > > > > > > too). Templates offered a series of challenges such as
we
> > > store
> > > > > them
> > > > > > > > > > in the flow definition which has made flows massive in
an
> > > > > unintended
> > > > > > > > > > way which isn't fun for cluster behavior.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > We have a couple cases where we headed down a
particular
> > > > concept
> > > > > and
> > > > > > > > > > came up with better approaches later. We need to
reconcile
> > > > these
> > > > > with
> > > > > > > > > > the benefit of hindsight, and while being careful to be
not
> > > > > overly
> > > > > > > > > > disruptive to existing users, to reduce the
> > > > codebase/maintenance
> > > > > > > > > > burden and allow continued evolution of the project.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Thanks
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 7:43 AM Russell Bateman <
> > > > > > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > > > > <mailto:[email protected]>>
> > > > > > > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > Joe,
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > I apologize for the off-topic intrusion, but what
replaces
> > > > > templates?
> > > > > > > > > > The Registry? Templates rocked and we have used them
since
> > > > 0.5.x.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Russ
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On 7/23/21 8:31 AM, Joe Witt wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > David,
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > I think this is a highly reasonable approach and such a
> > focus
> > > > > will
> > > > > > > > > > greatly help make a 2.0 release far more approachable
to
> > > knock
> > > > > out.
> > > > > > > > > > Not only that but tech debt reduction would help make
work
> > > > > towards
> > > > > > > > > > major features we'd think about in a 'major release'
sense
> > > more
> > > > > > > > > > approachable.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > We should remove all deprecated things (as well as
verify
> > we
> > > > > have the
> > > > > > > > > > right list). We should remove/consider removal of
> > deprecated
> > > > > > > > > > concepts
> > > > > > > > > > like templates. We should consider whether we can
resolve
> > the
> > > > > > > > > > various
> > > > > > > > > > ways we've handled what are now parameters down to one
> > clean
> > > > > > > > > > approach.
> > > > > > > > > > We should remove options in the nifi.properties which
turn
> > > out
> > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > never be used quite right (if there are). There is
quite a
> > > bit
> > > > we
> > > > > > > > > > can
> > > > > > > > > > do purely in the name of tech debt reduction.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Lots to consider here but I think this is the right
> > > discussion.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Than ks
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 7:26 AM Bryan Bende <
> > > [email protected]
> > > > > > > <mailto:
> > > > > > > > > > [email protected]>>
> > > > > > > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > I'm a +1 for this... Not sure if this falls under
"Removing
> > > > > > > > > > Deprecated
> > > > > > > > > > Components", but I think we should also look at
anything
> > that
> > > > has
> > > > > > > > > > been
> > > > > > > > > > marked as deprecated throughout the code base as a
> > candidate
> > > > for
> > > > > > > > > > removal. There are quite a few classes, methods,
> > properties,
> > > > etc
> > > > > > > > > > that
> > > > > > > > > > have been waiting for a chance to be removed.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 10:13 AM David Handermann
> > > > > > > > > > <[email protected]<mailto:
> > > > [email protected]
> > > > > >>
> > > > > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > > > > > Team,
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > With all of the excellent work that many have
contributed
> > to
> > > > NiFi
> > > > > > > > > > over the
> > > > > > > > > > years, the code base has also accumulated some amount
of
> > > > > technical
> > > > > > > > > > debt. A
> > > > > > > > > > handful of components have been marked as deprecated,
and
> > > some
> > > > > > > > > > components
> > > > > > > > > > remain in the code base to support integration with old
> > > > versions
> > > > > > > > > > of various
> > > > > > > > > > products. Following the principles of semantic
versioning,
> > > > > > > > > > introducing a
> > > > > > > > > > major release would provide the opportunity to remove
these
> > > > > > > > > > deprecated and
> > > > > > > > > > unsupported components.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Rather than focusing the next major release on new
> > features,
> > > > what
> > > > > > > > > > do you
> > > > > > > > > > think about focusing on technical debt removal? This
> > approach
> > > > > > > > > > would not
> > > > > > > > > > make for the most interesting release, but it provides
the
> > > > > > > > > > opportunity to
> > > > > > > > > > clean up elements that involve breaking changes.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Focusing on technical debt, at least three primary
goals
> > come
> > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > mind for
> > > > > > > > > > the next major release:
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > 1. Removal of deprecated and unmaintained components
> > > > > > > > > > 2. Require Java 11 as the minimum supported version
> > > > > > > > > > 3. Transition internal date and time handling to JSR
310
> > > > > java.time
> > > > > > > > > > components
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > *Removing Deprecated Components*
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Removing support for older and deprecated components
> > > provides a
> > > > > > > > > > great
> > > > > > > > > > opportunity to improve the overall security posture
when it
> > > > comes
> > > > > > > > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > maintaining dependencies. The OWASP dependency plugin
> > report
> > > > > > > > > > currently
> > > > > > > > > > generates 50 MB of HTML for questionable dependencies,
many
> > > of
> > > > > > > > > > which are
> > > > > > > > > > related to old versions of various libraries.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > As a starting point, here are a handful of components
and
> > > > > > > > > > extension modules
> > > > > > > > > > that could be targeted for removal in a major version:
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > - PostHTTP and GetHTTP
> > > > > > > > > > - ListenLumberjack and the entire
nifi-lumberjack-bundle
> > > > > > > > > > - ListenBeats and the entire nifi-beats-bundle
> > > > > > > > > > - Elasticsearch 5 components
> > > > > > > > > > - Hive 1 and 2 components
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > *Requiring Java 11*
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Java 8 is now over seven years old, and NiFi has
supported
> > > > > general
> > > > > > > > > > compatibility with Java 11 for several years. NiFi
1.14.0
> > > > > > > > > > incorporated
> > > > > > > > > > internal improvements specifically related to TLS 1.3,
> > which
> > > > > > > > > > allowed
> > > > > > > > > > closing out the long-running Java 11 compatibility epic
> > > > > NIFI-5174.
> > > > > > > > > > Making
> > > > > > > > > > Java 11 the minimum required version provides the
> > opportunity
> > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > address
> > > > > > > > > > any lingering edge cases and put NiFi in a better
position
> > to
> > > > > > > > > > support
> > > > > > > > > > current Java versions.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > *JSR 310 for Date and Time Handling*
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Without making the scope too broad, transitioning
internal
> > > date
> > > > > > > > > > and time
> > > > > > > > > > handling to use DateTimeFormatter instead of
> > SimpleDateFormat
> > > > > > > > > > would provide
> > > > > > > > > > a number of advantages. The Java Time components
provide
> > much
> > > > > > > > > > better
> > > > > > > > > > clarity when it comes to handling localized date and
time
> > > > > > > > > > representations,
> > > > > > > > > > and also avoid the inherent confusion of java.sql.Date
> > > > extending
> > > > > > > > > > java.util.Date. Many internal components, specifically
> > > > > > > > > > Record-oriented
> > > > > > > > > > processors and services, rely on date parsing, leading
to
> > > > > > > > > > confusion and
> > > > > > > > > > various workarounds. The pattern formats of
> > SimpleDateFormat
> > > > and
> > > > > > > > > > DateTimeFormatter are very similar, but there are a few
> > > subtle
> > > > > > > > > > differences.
> > > > > > > > > > Making this transition would provide a much better
> > foundation
> > > > > > > > > > going forward.
> > > > > > > > > > *Conclusion*
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Thanks for giving this proposal some consideration.
Many of
> > > you
> > > > > > > > > > have been
> > > > > > > > > > developing NiFi for years and I look forward to your
> > > feedback.
> > > > I
> > > > > > > > > > would be
> > > > > > > > > > glad to put together a more formalized recommendation
on
> > > > > > > > > > Confluence and
> > > > > > > > > > write up Jira epics if this general approach sounds
> > agreeable
> > > > to
> > > > > > > > > > the
> > > > > > > > > > community.
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > > Regards,
> > > > > > > > > > David Handermann
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >

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