Default values are ignored if a null value is set in preferences

• Type: Bug
• Status: Closed
• Resolution: Fixed
• Affects Version/s: 6.2.X EE, 7.0.0 M3
• Fix Version/s: 6.2.2 CE GA3 , 6.2.X EE, 7.0.0 M1
• Component/s: Core Infrastructure
• Labels:
  • QA-TP
  • ee-ts
  • liferay-fixpack-platform-25-6210
• Branch Version/s:
  6.2.x
• Backported to Branch:
  Committed
• Story Points: 5
• Git Pull Request: https://github.com/brianchandotcom/liferay-portal/pull/19890

If a null value is set to the preferences, the default value is not used.
e.g.

portletPreferences.setValue(key, null);


portletPreferences.getValue(key, someDefaultValue)) == null

According to the specification, "A null value is treated as a non-existent value", thus the default value should be used.

This behavior causes problem during the import process, when the preferences are copied. When there is no value for a key, a null value is copied to the preferences. Querying this value ignores the default value, and returns null, which leads to NullPointerExceptions.

Possible reproduction steps:

1. Create a Site Template
2. Add an RSS portlet to a page, configure it, delete all of the displayed feeds.
3. Create a Site from the template
4. Go to the page with the RSS portlet, modify something the page.
5. At the top of the page, a message is displayed: "This page has been changed since the last update from the site template. "
6. Reset the changes
7. Refresh the page

Result: NullPointerException in the logs.