PATCH isn't working through the Che Server kubernetes api

[JPinkney]

Describe the bug

When trying to PATCH a devworkspace through the regular kubernetes api everything works successfully, but if you try and PATCH the same devworkspace through the Che Server kubernetes api you get:

{
  "kind": "Status",
  "apiVersion": "v1",
  "metadata": {
    
  },
  "status": "Failure",
  "message": "unexpected end of JSON input",
  "reason": "BadRequest",
  "code": 400
}

Che version

• latest 7.24.0
• nightly
• other: please specify

Steps to reproduce

First, make sure Che and the devworkspace operator are installed on the same cluster
Then create a namespace called sample and run oc project sample so that the below devworkspace will be created there
Next, oc create -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/devfile/devworkspace-operator/master/samples/theia-nodejs.yaml
Next, proxy kubernetes api to port 8080

kubectl proxy --port=8080

Then, make a request to the kubernetes api regularly:

curl --data "[{\"path\": \"/spec/started\",\"op\": \"replace\", \"value\": true}]" -X PATCH -H "Content-Type: application/json-patch+json" localhost:8080/apis/workspace.devfile.io/v1alpha2/namespaces/sample/devworkspaces/theia-nodejs

And see that the devworkspace theia-nodejs has been correctly stopped.

Then, try and make the same request to the Che Server kubernetes API:

curl -k -v -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" --data "[{\"path\": \"/spec/started\",\"op\": \"replace\", \"value\": false}]" -X PATCH -H "Content-Type: application/json-patch+json" https://che-che.apps-crc.testing/api/unsupported/k8s/apis/workspace.devfile.io/v1alpha2/namespaces/sample/devworkspaces/theia-nodejs

and see that you end up getting:

{
  "kind": "Status",
  "apiVersion": "v1",
  "metadata": {
    
  },
  "status": "Failure",
  "message": "unexpected end of JSON input",
  "reason": "BadRequest",
  "code": 400
}

Expected behavior

You should not get an error when using PATCH against the che server kubernetes api and the devworkspace should be patched then returned

Runtime

• kubernetes (include output of kubectl version)
• Openshift (include output of oc version)
• minikube (include output of minikube version and kubectl version)
• minishift (include output of minishift version and oc version)
• docker-desktop + K8S (include output of docker version and kubectl version)
• other: (please specify)
  Openshift 4.6.6

Screenshots

Installation method

• chectl
  • provide a full command that was used to deploy Eclipse Che (including the output)
  • provide an output of chectl version command
• OperatorHub
• I don't know
  chectl server:deploy -p crc

Environment

• my computer
  • Windows
  • Linux
  • macOS
• Cloud
  • Amazon
  • Azure
  • GCE
  • other (please specify)
• other: please specify

Eclipse Che Logs

Additional context

This is related to: #18858. In order to stop/start a DevWorkspace you need to use PATCH

[JPinkney]

Closing because the fix is provided in #18893