Integer encoder decoder for Netty

Question

I want to stream a series of integers across a Netty channel. Right now , in my code channel.write(Integer.valueOf(val) , I get the error java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: unsupported message type: class java.lang.Integer which I understand is because I do not have any integer encoder /decoder as a handler in the pipeline. Is this correct? Do I have to write my own integer decoder or there is one available to use ? Some guidance around this topic will be extremely helpful.

Answer 1

Yes this is the case... You can also just write it in a ChannelBuffer and then write the ChannelBuffer to the Channel.

Something like:

ChannelBuffer buf = ChannelBuffers.buffer(4);
buf.writeInt(Integer.valueOf(val));
channel.write(buf);

Answer 2

Yup, your understanding is correct. Without an appropriate FrameEncoder in your pipeline, Netty is going to throw up its hands and say it doesn't know how to deal with an Integer .

If you want to add an off-the-shelf component, you can add an ObjectEncoder and ObjectDecoder to your pipeline. Otherwise, you'll want to implement your own frame encoder and decoders.