don't serialize empty tuples for v2 filters, and warn when reading such metadata (zarr-developers#2847)

* don't serialize empty tuples for v2 filters, and warn when reading such metadata

* release notes

* alter text in comment

* add skeleton of metadata spec compliance property test

* do something for V3

---------

Co-authored-by: Deepak Cherian <[email protected]>

Author: d-v-b

changes/2847.fix.rst

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Fixed a bug where ``ArrayV2Metadata`` could save ``filters`` as an empty array.

src/zarr/core/metadata/v2.py

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
 
 import base64
+import warnings
 from collections.abc import Iterable
 from enum import Enum
 from functools import cached_property
@@ -178,6 +179,16 @@ def from_dict(cls, data: dict[str, Any]) -> ArrayV2Metadata:
         # handle the renames
         expected |= {"dtype", "chunks"}
 
+        # check if `filters` is an empty sequence; if so use None instead and raise a warning
+        if _data["filters"] is not None and len(_data["filters"]) == 0:
+            msg = (
+                "Found an empty list of filters in the array metadata document. "
+                "This is contrary to the Zarr V2 specification, and will cause an error in the future. "
+                "Use None (or Null in a JSON document) instead of an empty list of filters."
+            )
+            warnings.warn(msg, UserWarning, stacklevel=1)
+            _data["filters"] = None
+
         _data = {k: v for k, v in _data.items() if k in expected}
 
         return cls(**_data)
@@ -255,7 +266,11 @@ def parse_filters(data: object) -> tuple[numcodecs.abc.Codec, ...] | None:
             else:
                 msg = f"Invalid filter at index {idx}. Expected a numcodecs.abc.Codec or a dict representation of numcodecs.abc.Codec. Got {type(val)} instead."
                 raise TypeError(msg)
-        return tuple(out)
+        if len(out) == 0:
+            # Per the v2 spec, an empty tuple is not allowed -- use None to express "no filters"
+            return None
+        else:
+            return tuple(out)
     # take a single codec instance and wrap it in a tuple
     if isinstance(data, numcodecs.abc.Codec):
         return (data,)

tests/test_array.py

@@ -972,45 +972,40 @@ def test_default_fill_value(dtype: str, fill_value_expected: object, store: Stor
     @staticmethod
     @pytest.mark.parametrize("dtype", ["uint8", "float32", "str"])
     @pytest.mark.parametrize("empty_value", [None, ()])
-    async def test_no_filters_compressors(store: MemoryStore, dtype: str, empty_value: Any) -> None:
+    async def test_no_filters_compressors(
+        store: MemoryStore, dtype: str, empty_value: object, zarr_format: ZarrFormat
+    ) -> None:
         """
         Test that the default ``filters`` and ``compressors`` are removed when ``create_array`` is invoked.
         """
 
-        # v2
         arr = await create_array(
             store=store,
             dtype=dtype,
             shape=(10,),
-            zarr_format=2,
+            zarr_format=zarr_format,
             compressors=empty_value,
             filters=empty_value,
         )
         # Test metadata explicitly
-        assert arr.metadata.zarr_format == 2  # guard for mypy
-        # The v2 metadata stores None and () separately
-        assert arr.metadata.filters == empty_value
-        # The v2 metadata does not allow tuple for compressor, therefore it is turned into None
-        assert arr.metadata.compressor is None
-
-        assert arr.filters == ()
-        assert arr.compressors == ()
-
-        # v3
-        arr = await create_array(
-            store=store,
-            dtype=dtype,
-            shape=(10,),
-            compressors=empty_value,
-            filters=empty_value,
-        )
-        assert arr.metadata.zarr_format == 3  # guard for mypy
-        if dtype == "str":
-            assert arr.metadata.codecs == (VLenUTF8Codec(),)
-            assert arr.serializer == VLenUTF8Codec()
+        if zarr_format == 2:
+            assert arr.metadata.zarr_format == 2  # guard for mypy
+            # v2 spec requires that filters be either a collection with at least one filter, or None
+            assert arr.metadata.filters is None
+            # Compressor is a single element in v2 metadata; the absence of a compressor is encoded
+            # as None
+            assert arr.metadata.compressor is None
+
+            assert arr.filters == ()
+            assert arr.compressors == ()
         else:
-            assert arr.metadata.codecs == (BytesCodec(),)
-            assert arr.serializer == BytesCodec()
+            assert arr.metadata.zarr_format == 3  # guard for mypy
+            if dtype == "str":
+                assert arr.metadata.codecs == (VLenUTF8Codec(),)
+                assert arr.serializer == VLenUTF8Codec()
+            else:
+                assert arr.metadata.codecs == (BytesCodec(),)
+                assert arr.serializer == BytesCodec()
 
     @staticmethod
     @pytest.mark.parametrize("dtype", ["uint8", "float32", "str"])

tests/test_metadata/test_v2.py

@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ def test_parse_zarr_format_invalid(data: Any) -> None:
 
 
 @pytest.mark.parametrize("attributes", [None, {"foo": "bar"}])
-@pytest.mark.parametrize("filters", [None, (), (numcodecs.GZip(),)])
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("filters", [None, (numcodecs.GZip(),)])
 @pytest.mark.parametrize("compressor", [None, numcodecs.GZip()])
 @pytest.mark.parametrize("fill_value", [None, 0, 1])
 @pytest.mark.parametrize("order", ["C", "F"])
@@ -81,6 +81,24 @@ def test_metadata_to_dict(
     assert observed == expected
 
 
+def test_filters_empty_tuple_warns() -> None:
+    metadata_dict = {
+        "zarr_format": 2,
+        "shape": (1,),
+        "chunks": (1,),
+        "dtype": "uint8",
+        "order": "C",
+        "compressor": None,
+        "filters": (),
+        "fill_value": 0,
+    }
+    with pytest.warns(
+        UserWarning, match="Found an empty list of filters in the array metadata document."
+    ):
+        meta = ArrayV2Metadata.from_dict(metadata_dict)
+    assert meta.filters is None
+
+
 class TestConsolidated:
     @pytest.fixture
     async def v2_consolidated_metadata(

tests/test_properties.py

@@ -113,6 +113,20 @@ async def test_roundtrip_array_metadata(
         assert actual == expected
 
 
+@given(store=stores, meta=array_metadata())  # type: ignore[misc]
+def test_array_metadata_meets_spec(store: Store, meta: ArrayV2Metadata | ArrayV3Metadata) -> None:
+    # TODO: fill this out
+    asdict = meta.to_dict()
+    if isinstance(meta, ArrayV2Metadata):
+        assert asdict["filters"] != ()
+        assert asdict["filters"] is None or isinstance(asdict["filters"], tuple)
+        assert asdict["zarr_format"] == 2
+    elif isinstance(meta, ArrayV3Metadata):
+        assert asdict["zarr_format"] == 3
+    else:
+        raise NotImplementedError
+
+
 # @st.composite
 # def advanced_indices(draw, *, shape):
 #     basic_idxr = draw(