Simplifying RichFaces Push configuration

[lfryc]

From the responses on forums, it seems RichFaces Push is hard to start up with, despite it's quite simple concept to use.

Following post covers whole situation and offers solution.

Current sources for documentation are:

• Ilya's blog (RF 4.0)
  • out-dated
  • too complex sample
  • http://relation.to/18860.lace
• a4j:push component reference
  • unclear / "unsorted"
  • not-complete
  • too complex
  • http://docs.jboss.org/richfaces/latest_4_X/Component_Reference/en-US/html/chap-Component_Reference-Actions.html#sect-Component_Reference-Actions-a4jpush
• Showcase
  • too complex sample and lacks TopicsInitializer part description
  • http://showcase.richfaces.org/richfaces/component-sample.jsf?demo=push&skin=blueSky

From following forum posts, I got feeling it's really not enought:

• https://community.jboss.org/message/644332#644332
• https://community.jboss.org/message/645796#645796
• https://community.jboss.org/message/642038#642038

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I have created issue for simplifying Push documentation ( https://issues.jboss.org/browse/RFPL-1980 ) already and I will brain-storm about the possible ways how to achieve that there.

I have also created article how to start with various containers which is more accurate than current docs and information there could be used as basis for simplified documentation.

==============================

Question is what we can do on configuration/impl side for making a start simpler:

1. Push JMS integration should be made optional (turned off by default)
   • sensible default
   • breaking backward compatibility
   • deprecating org.richfaces.push.jms.disable
   • use org.richfaces.push.jms.enable instead
   • https://issues.jboss.org/browse/RF-11892
2. Push topics initialization
   • initialization composed from two parts, which are currently handled programatically by user-defined TopicsInitializer
     • PushContext initialization
       • can be initialized lazily
       • https://issues.jboss.org/browse/RF-11894
     • creating topics
       1. let user configure list of topics in web.xml (org.richfaces.push.topics)
       2. initialize topics on demand (when first used)
          • creating topic is light-weight operation when JMS integration is turned off
          • instead, new durable JMS connection needs to be established
          • https://issues.jboss.org/browse/RF-11483

[bleathem]

1. Given that push without JMS will work in all cases, it is indeed the sensible default.  Users can optionaly "upgrade" to using JMS. We'll just have to make sure we announce this backward incompatibility well with the release.

2. Initialising the topics lazily seems like a good route, making it easy for developers to consume the feature.  However, alloing users to additionally configure topics via the web.xml may be useful as a performance optimisation.

[lfryc]

+1

Brian Leathem wrote:

2. Initialising the topics lazily seems like a good route, making it easy for developers to consume the feature.  However, alloing users to additionally configure topics via the web.xml may be useful as a performance optimisation.

Yes, user can still optimize that using TopicsInitializer.

Lets open feature request once we will see the need for that.