Is a server required to honor the initialCount argument on @stream

[robrichard]

Context

Currently the incremental delivery spec proposal states (emphasis added):

Therefore, GraphQL clients must be able to process a response
that ignores the @defer and/or @stream directives. This also applies to the
initialCount argument on the @stream directive. Clients must be able to
process a streamed response that contains a different number of initial list
items than what was specified in the initialCount argument.

Should servers be required to send at least as many items as the initialCount argument, or is it ok to send fewer items initially?

Option 1 - Update text to

Clients must be able to process a streamed response that contains more initial list items than what was specified in the initialCount argument.

• If a client receives fewer items than what was specified in the initialCount argument, it can assume that the list is complete. It would be a breaking change to switch to option 2 as this would break this client assumption.
• Developer experience - the developer does not have to account for fewer items being rendered, unless the list is shorter than the initial count.

Option 2 - Text remains as-is

• Guiding Principle: Preserve option value - We can change the spec to option 1, without breaking existing clients.
• Type system guarantees are the same as any list can be empty or have fewer items than expected.
• Advanced servers may have some knowledge that returning a lower initial count is more optimal than what was requested by the client.