Array properties

This topic describes the use of array properties in the Delphix Engine command-line interface.

Some Delphix objects represent properties as arrays. Arrays are effectively objects whose namespace is a contiguous set of integers. While they behave like objects and their properties can be referenced via the same object property notation, they differ in several key areas.

Arrays can be divided into two types: arrays of primitive types (strings, integers, etc.) and arrays of objects. Arrays of objects can be managed like other objects via nested property names and the edit command, but differ in the following respects:

• When an array element is unset, it removes the element from the array and shifts all other elements down to preserve the contiguous index space.

• New array elements can only be appended to the end of the array by specifying an index that is one more than the maximum index of the array.

• When displaying a property that is an array, if the length is greater than 3, then it is displayed only as “[ … ]”. The complete contents of the array can be displayed by getting or editing that particular property.

Arrays of primitive types can be managed as arrays of objects, but also support an inline notation using comma-separated notation. This allows single-element arrays to be set as standard property, and for arrays of strings to be set on a single line instead of having to edit each element.

Regardless of the element type, arrays are sent as complete objects when updated. When any array element is changed and subsequently committed, the complete array is sent to the server. When a single array element is reverted, the entire contents of the array are reverted.

The topic CLI cookbook: Setting Multiple Addresses for a Target Host provides an example of working with a property that is an array of strings.