Make large-message stripping opt-in (default: full data forwarded)

CLAUDE.md

@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ Then, for each message in the (compressed) payload:
 
 ## Testing
 
-### Test Count: 174 unit tests across 10 test suites
+### Test Count: 176 unit tests across 11 test suites
 
 ### Commands
 ```bash
@@ -232,7 +232,7 @@ pre-commit run -a
 port: 9090                  # WebSocket port
 publish_rate: 50.0          # Hz
 session_timeout: 10.0       # seconds
-strip_large_messages: true  # Strip Image/PointCloud2/etc data fields
+strip_large_messages: false # Opt-in: strip Image/PointCloud2/etc data fields
 ```
 
 ### RTI (via CLI flags):
@@ -263,5 +263,5 @@ pj_bridge_fastdds --domains 0 1 --port 9090 --publish-rate 50 --session-timeout
 
 **Last Updated**: 2026-07-02
 **Project Phase**: Unified multi-backend architecture
-**Test Status**: 174 unit tests passing (all sanitizers clean)
+**Test Status**: 176 unit tests passing (all sanitizers clean)
 **Executables**: `pj_bridge_ros2` (ROS2), `pj_bridge_rti` (RTI DDS, disabled), `pj_bridge_fastdds` (FastDDS)

CMakeLists.txt

@@ -249,6 +249,7 @@ if(BUILD_TESTING AND ament_cmake_FOUND)
     tests/unit/test_topic_discovery.cpp
     tests/unit/test_schema_extractor.cpp
     tests/unit/test_generic_subscription_manager.cpp
+    tests/unit/test_ros2_subscription_manager.cpp
     tests/unit/test_message_stripper.cpp
   )
 

README.md

@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ independently.
 - **High Performance**: 50 Hz message aggregation with ZSTD compression. The original message timestamp is preserved, and less bandwidth is used.
 - **Multi-Client Support**: Multiple clients can connect simultaneously with shared subscriptions
 - **Runtime Schema Discovery**: Automatic extraction of message schemas from installed ROS2 packages on the server side.
-- **Large Message Stripping**: Automatic stripping of large array fields (Image, PointCloud2, LaserScan, OccupancyGrid) to reduce bandwidth while preserving metadata
+- **Large Message Stripping** (opt-in): Optional stripping of large array fields (Image, PointCloud2, LaserScan, OccupancyGrid) to reduce bandwidth while preserving metadata. Disabled by default — full message data is forwarded; enable with `strip_large_messages:=true` for low-bandwidth links
 
 ## CI Status
 
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ independently.
 | `port` | int | 9090 | WebSocket server port |
 | `publish_rate` | double | 50.0 | Aggregation publish rate in Hz |
 | `session_timeout` | double | 10.0 | Client timeout duration in seconds |
-| `strip_large_messages` | bool | true | Strip large arrays from Image, PointCloud2, LaserScan, OccupancyGrid messages |
+| `strip_large_messages` | bool | false | Opt-in: strip large arrays from Image, PointCloud2, LaserScan, OccupancyGrid messages |
 
 ## Just "Download and Run"
 

ros2/include/pj_bridge_ros2/ros2_subscription_manager.hpp

@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ namespace pj_bridge {
  */
 class Ros2SubscriptionManager : public SubscriptionManagerInterface {
  public:
-  explicit Ros2SubscriptionManager(rclcpp::Node::SharedPtr node, bool strip_large_messages = true);
+  explicit Ros2SubscriptionManager(rclcpp::Node::SharedPtr node, bool strip_large_messages = false);
 
   Ros2SubscriptionManager(const Ros2SubscriptionManager&) = delete;
   Ros2SubscriptionManager& operator=(const Ros2SubscriptionManager&) = delete;

ros2/src/main.cpp

@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ int main(int argc, char** argv) {
   node->declare_parameter<int>("port", 9090);
   node->declare_parameter<double>("publish_rate", 50.0);
   node->declare_parameter<double>("session_timeout", 10.0);
-  node->declare_parameter<bool>("strip_large_messages", true);
+  node->declare_parameter<bool>("strip_large_messages", false);
 
   int port = node->get_parameter("port").as_int();
   double publish_rate = node->get_parameter("publish_rate").as_double();

tests/unit/test_ros2_subscription_manager.cpp

@@ -0,0 +1,106 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright (C) 2026 Davide Faconti
+ *
+ * This file is part of pj_bridge.
+ *
+ * pj_bridge is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published by
+ * the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
+ * (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * pj_bridge is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with pj_bridge. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+#include <gtest/gtest.h>
+
+#include <rclcpp/rclcpp.hpp>
+#include <sensor_msgs/msg/image.hpp>
+
+#include <atomic>
+#include <chrono>
+#include <thread>
+
+#include "pj_bridge_ros2/ros2_subscription_manager.hpp"
+
+using namespace pj_bridge;
+
+namespace {
+
+// Publish an Image with a large data payload through the manager and return
+// the size of the serialized message delivered to the bridge callback.
+size_t roundtrip_image_bytes(bool strip_large_messages, bool use_default_config) {
+  auto node = std::make_shared<rclcpp::Node>(
+      use_default_config ? "test_strip_default" : (strip_large_messages ? "test_strip_on" : "test_strip_off"));
+  auto manager = use_default_config ? std::make_shared<Ros2SubscriptionManager>(node)
+                                    : std::make_shared<Ros2SubscriptionManager>(node, strip_large_messages);
+
+  std::atomic<size_t> received_size{0};
+  manager->set_message_callback(
+      [&received_size](const std::string&, std::shared_ptr<std::vector<std::byte>> data, uint64_t) {
+        received_size = data->size();
+      });
+
+  const std::string topic = "/strip_test_image_" + std::string(node->get_name());
+  auto publisher = node->create_publisher<sensor_msgs::msg::Image>(topic, rclcpp::QoS(10));
+  EXPECT_TRUE(manager->subscribe(topic, "sensor_msgs/msg/Image"));
+
+  sensor_msgs::msg::Image img;
+  img.width = 100;
+  img.height = 100;
+  img.step = 300;
+  img.encoding = "rgb8";
+  img.data.assign(static_cast<size_t>(img.height) * img.step, 0xAB);
+
+  rclcpp::executors::SingleThreadedExecutor executor;
+  executor.add_node(node);
+
+  auto deadline = std::chrono::steady_clock::now() + std::chrono::seconds(5);
+  while (received_size.load() == 0 && std::chrono::steady_clock::now() < deadline) {
+    publisher->publish(img);
+    executor.spin_some();
+    std::this_thread::sleep_for(std::chrono::milliseconds(10));
+  }
+
+  manager->unsubscribe_all();
+  return received_size.load();
+}
+
+constexpr size_t kImagePayloadBytes = 100 * 300;
+
+}  // namespace
+
+class Ros2SubscriptionManagerTest : public ::testing::Test {
+ protected:
+  void SetUp() override {
+    rclcpp::init(0, nullptr);
+  }
+
+  void TearDown() override {
+    rclcpp::shutdown();
+  }
+};
+
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// Stripping is opt-in: by default, large data fields are forwarded intact.
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+TEST_F(Ros2SubscriptionManagerTest, DataFieldsIncludedByDefault) {
+  size_t received = roundtrip_image_bytes(false, /*use_default_config=*/true);
+  ASSERT_GT(received, 0u) << "no message received";
+  EXPECT_GE(received, kImagePayloadBytes) << "image data was stripped despite default (opt-in) configuration";
+}
+
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// Opting in still strips: with strip_large_messages=true the payload is
+// removed and only the metadata remains.
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+TEST_F(Ros2SubscriptionManagerTest, OptInStrippingRemovesData) {
+  size_t received = roundtrip_image_bytes(/*strip_large_messages=*/true, /*use_default_config=*/false);
+  ASSERT_GT(received, 0u) << "no message received";
+  EXPECT_LT(received, kImagePayloadBytes) << "opt-in stripping did not remove the data payload";
+}