diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/ArrayMetadata.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/ArrayMetadata.java
index aaa004ef..03b2e85f 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/ArrayMetadata.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/ArrayMetadata.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonInclude;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.utils.MultiArrayUtils;
@@ -16,6 +17,7 @@ public abstract class ArrayMetadata {
 
     public final long[] shape;
 
+    @JsonInclude(JsonInclude.Include.ALWAYS)
     @JsonProperty("fill_value")
     public final Object fillValue;
     @JsonIgnore
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/codec/core/BytesCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
index 4ccc8f91..9f865307 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/core/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonValue;
+import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.ArrayBytesCodec;
 import ucar.ma2.*;
 
@@ -8,31 +9,36 @@
 import java.nio.ByteOrder;
 
 public abstract class BytesCodec extends ArrayBytesCodec {
-    protected abstract ByteOrder getByteOrder();
+    protected abstract ByteOrder getByteOrder() throws ZarrException;
 
     @Override
-public Array decode(ByteBuffer chunkBytes) {
-    chunkBytes.order(getByteOrder());
-    DataType dtype = arrayMetadata.dataType.getMA2DataType();
-    int[] shape = arrayMetadata.chunkShape;
-
-    // Array.factory does not support boolean arrays directly from ByteBuffer
-    if (dtype == DataType.BOOLEAN) {
-        int size = chunkBytes.remaining();
-        boolean[] bools = new boolean[size];
-        for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
-            bools[i] = chunkBytes.get(i) != 0;
-        }
+    public Array decode(ByteBuffer chunkBytes) throws ZarrException {
+        ByteOrder order = ByteOrder.BIG_ENDIAN; // Default for 1-byte types
+        if (arrayMetadata.dataType.getByteCount() > 1)
+            order = getByteOrder();
+        chunkBytes.order(order);
+        DataType dtype = arrayMetadata.dataType.getMA2DataType();
+        int[] shape = arrayMetadata.chunkShape;
+
+        // Array.factory does not support boolean arrays directly from ByteBuffer
+        if (dtype == DataType.BOOLEAN) {
+            int size = chunkBytes.remaining();
+            boolean[] bools = new boolean[size];
+            for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
+                bools[i] = chunkBytes.get(i) != 0;
+            }
 
-        Index index = Index.factory(shape);
-        return Array.factory(DataType.BOOLEAN, index, bools);
+            Index index = Index.factory(shape);
+            return Array.factory(DataType.BOOLEAN, index, bools);
+        }
+        return Array.factory(dtype, shape, chunkBytes);
     }
 
-    return Array.factory(dtype, shape, chunkBytes);
-}
     @Override
-    public ByteBuffer encode(Array chunkArray) {
-        ByteOrder order = getByteOrder();
+    public ByteBuffer encode(Array chunkArray) throws ZarrException {
+        ByteOrder order = ByteOrder.BIG_ENDIAN; // Default for 1-byte types
+        if (arrayMetadata.dataType.getByteCount() > 1)
+            order = getByteOrder();
 
         // Boolean
         if (chunkArray instanceof ArrayBoolean) {
@@ -94,6 +100,10 @@ public ByteOrder getByteOrder() {
                     throw new RuntimeException("Unreachable");
             }
         }
+
+        public static Endian nativeOrder() {
+            return ByteOrder.nativeOrder() == ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN ? LITTLE : BIG;
+        }
     }
 
 }
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Array.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Array.java
index 638d6484..1cbfb056 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Array.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Array.java
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2;
 
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 import java.util.function.Function;
 import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Node.makeObjectMapper;
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Node.makeObjectWriter;
 
 public class Array extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Array implements Node {
 
@@ -141,8 +142,8 @@ public static Array create(StoreHandle storeHandle, ArrayMetadata arrayMetadata,
           "Trying to create a new array in " + storeHandle + ". But " + metadataHandle
               + " already exists.");
     }
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(arrayMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(arrayMetadata));
     metadataHandle.set(metadataBytes);
     return new Array(storeHandle, arrayMetadata);
   }
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Group.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Group.java
index 38c0b946..c8982e13 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Group.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Group.java
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2;
 
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 import java.nio.file.Paths;
 import java.util.function.Function;
 import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Node.makeObjectMapper;
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Node.makeObjectWriter;
 
 public class Group extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Group implements Node{
   public GroupMetadata metadata;
@@ -41,8 +42,8 @@ public static Group open(String path) throws IOException {
   public static Group create(
       @Nonnull StoreHandle storeHandle, @Nonnull GroupMetadata groupMetadata
   ) throws IOException {
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(groupMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(groupMetadata));
     storeHandle.resolve(ZGROUP).set(metadataBytes);
     return new Group(storeHandle, groupMetadata);
   }
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Node.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Node.java
index 46232000..09b972a4 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Node.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/Node.java
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2;
 
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonInclude;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.datatype.jdk8.Jdk8Module;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
@@ -21,7 +23,11 @@ static ObjectMapper makeObjectMapper() {
     return objectMapper;
   }
 
-  /**
+  static ObjectWriter makeObjectWriter() {
+    return makeObjectMapper().writerWithDefaultPrettyPrinter();
+  }
+
+    /**
    * Opens an existing Zarr array or group at a specified storage location.
    *
    * @param storeHandle the storage location of the Zarr array
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BloscCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
index 0bccc184..4e618d47 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.core.JsonGenerator;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.core.JsonParser;
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@
 
 public class BloscCodec extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.core.BloscCodec implements Codec {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String id = "blosc";
 
   @Nonnull
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BytesCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
index 773022a9..6f7d7973 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
@@ -1,8 +1,5 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.codec.core;
 
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.ArrayMetadata;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.codec.Codec;
 
@@ -14,9 +11,7 @@ public class BytesCodec extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.core.BytesCodec imp
     @Nonnull
     public final Endian endian;
 
-    @JsonCreator
-    public BytesCodec(
-        @JsonProperty(value = "endian", defaultValue = "little") Endian endian) {
+    public BytesCodec(Endian endian) {
         this.endian = endian;
     }
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/ZlibCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/ZlibCodec.java
index 5093b586..3e9b5cf7 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/ZlibCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v2/codec/core/ZlibCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.ArrayMetadata;
@@ -16,6 +17,7 @@
 
 public class ZlibCodec extends BytesBytesCodec implements Codec {
 
+    @JsonIgnore
     public final String id = "zlib";
     public final int level;
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Array.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Array.java
index 4d1434f7..19c82fbf 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Array.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Array.java
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3;
 
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
 import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
 import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.Node.makeObjectMapper;
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.Node.makeObjectWriter;
 
 public class Array extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Array implements Node {
 
@@ -136,8 +137,8 @@ public static Array create(StoreHandle storeHandle, ArrayMetadata arrayMetadata,
           "Trying to create a new array in " + storeHandle + ". But " + metadataHandle
               + " already exists.");
     }
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(arrayMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(arrayMetadata));
     metadataHandle.set(metadataBytes);
     return new Array(storeHandle, arrayMetadata);
   }
@@ -182,8 +183,8 @@ public static ArrayMetadataBuilder metadataBuilder(ArrayMetadata existingMetadat
   }
 
   private Array writeMetadata(ArrayMetadata newArrayMetadata) throws ZarrException, IOException {
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(newArrayMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(newArrayMetadata));
     storeHandle.resolve(ZARR_JSON)
         .set(metadataBytes);
     return new Array(storeHandle, newArrayMetadata);
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/ArrayMetadataBuilder.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/ArrayMetadataBuilder.java
index 212f4732..417d8ede 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/ArrayMetadataBuilder.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/ArrayMetadataBuilder.java
@@ -73,6 +73,12 @@ public ArrayMetadataBuilder withDefaultChunkKeyEncoding(Separator separator) {
     return this;
   }
 
+    public ArrayMetadataBuilder withDefaultChunkKeyEncoding() {
+        this.chunkKeyEncoding = new DefaultChunkKeyEncoding(
+            new DefaultChunkKeyEncoding.Configuration(Separator.SLASH));
+        return this;
+    }
+
   public ArrayMetadataBuilder withDefaultChunkKeyEncoding(String separator) {
     this.chunkKeyEncoding =
         new DefaultChunkKeyEncoding(
@@ -85,6 +91,12 @@ public ArrayMetadataBuilder withV2ChunkKeyEncoding(Separator separator) {
     return this;
   }
 
+  public ArrayMetadataBuilder withV2ChunkKeyEncoding() {
+    this.chunkKeyEncoding = new V2ChunkKeyEncoding(
+        new V2ChunkKeyEncoding.Configuration(Separator.DOT));
+    return this;
+  }
+
   public ArrayMetadataBuilder withV2ChunkKeyEncoding(String separator) {
     this.chunkKeyEncoding =
         new V2ChunkKeyEncoding(new V2ChunkKeyEncoding.Configuration(Separator.valueOf(separator)));
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Group.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Group.java
index 9c56f25c..7b025975 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Group.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Group.java
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3;
 
-import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
 import javax.annotation.Nullable;
 import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.Node.makeObjectMapper;
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.Node.makeObjectWriter;
 
 
 public class Group extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Group implements Node {
@@ -44,8 +45,8 @@ public static Group open(String path) throws IOException {
   public static Group create(
       @Nonnull StoreHandle storeHandle, @Nonnull GroupMetadata groupMetadata
   ) throws IOException {
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(groupMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(groupMetadata));
     storeHandle.resolve(ZARR_JSON)
         .set(metadataBytes);
     return new Group(storeHandle, groupMetadata);
@@ -114,8 +115,8 @@ public Array createArray(String key,
   }
 
   private Group writeMetadata(GroupMetadata newGroupMetadata) throws IOException {
-    ObjectMapper objectMapper = makeObjectMapper();
-    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectMapper.writeValueAsBytes(newGroupMetadata));
+    ObjectWriter objectWriter = makeObjectWriter();
+    ByteBuffer metadataBytes = ByteBuffer.wrap(objectWriter.writeValueAsBytes(newGroupMetadata));
     storeHandle.resolve(ZARR_JSON)
         .set(metadataBytes);
     return new Group(storeHandle, newGroupMetadata);
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Node.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Node.java
index 235e37f3..00e17446 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Node.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/Node.java
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3;
 
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonInclude;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectWriter;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.datatype.jdk8.Jdk8Module;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
@@ -20,9 +22,14 @@ static ObjectMapper makeObjectMapper() {
     ObjectMapper objectMapper = new ObjectMapper();
     objectMapper.registerModule(new Jdk8Module());
     objectMapper.registerSubtypes(CodecRegistry.getNamedTypes());
+    objectMapper.setDefaultPropertyInclusion(JsonInclude.Include.NON_NULL);
     return objectMapper;
   }
 
+  static ObjectWriter makeObjectWriter() {
+    return makeObjectMapper().writerWithDefaultPrettyPrinter();
+  }
+
   /**
    * Opens an existing Zarr array or group at a specified storage location.
    *
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkgrid/RegularChunkGrid.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkgrid/RegularChunkGrid.java
index 380a2a97..0e897696 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkgrid/RegularChunkGrid.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkgrid/RegularChunkGrid.java
@@ -1,12 +1,14 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.chunkgrid;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
 
 
 public class RegularChunkGrid extends ChunkGrid {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "regular";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/DefaultChunkKeyEncoding.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/DefaultChunkKeyEncoding.java
index 52b7ea6d..208280c0 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/DefaultChunkKeyEncoding.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/DefaultChunkKeyEncoding.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.chunkkeyencoding;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.chunkkeyencoding.Separator;
 
@@ -11,6 +12,7 @@
 
 public class DefaultChunkKeyEncoding extends ChunkKeyEncoding {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "default";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/V2ChunkKeyEncoding.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/V2ChunkKeyEncoding.java
index d72b429b..d62994c9 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/V2ChunkKeyEncoding.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/chunkkeyencoding/V2ChunkKeyEncoding.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.chunkkeyencoding;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.chunkkeyencoding.Separator;
 
@@ -11,6 +12,7 @@
 
 public class V2ChunkKeyEncoding extends ChunkKeyEncoding {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "v2";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/CodecBuilder.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/CodecBuilder.java
index ad2f70c4..e281cde0 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/CodecBuilder.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/CodecBuilder.java
@@ -67,7 +67,10 @@ public CodecBuilder withTranspose(int[] order) {
   }
 
   public CodecBuilder withBytes(Endian endian) {
-    codecs.add(new BytesCodec(new BytesCodec.Configuration(endian)));
+    if (dataType.getByteCount() <= 1)
+        codecs.add(new BytesCodec());
+    else
+        codecs.add(new BytesCodec(endian));
     return this;
   }
 
@@ -75,6 +78,10 @@ public CodecBuilder withBytes(String endian) {
     return withBytes(BytesCodec.Endian.valueOf(endian));
   }
 
+  public CodecBuilder withBytes() {
+    return withBytes(Endian.nativeOrder());
+  }
+
   public CodecBuilder withGzip(int clevel) {
     try {
       codecs.add(new GzipCodec(new GzipCodec.Configuration(clevel)));
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BloscCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
index caa385fa..2daaec32 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BloscCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.core.JsonGenerator;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.core.JsonParseException;
@@ -23,6 +24,7 @@
 
 public class BloscCodec extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.core.BloscCodec implements Codec{
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "blosc";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BytesCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
index 311e9f56..ed9380be 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/BytesCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.Codec;
@@ -8,20 +9,26 @@
 
 import java.nio.ByteOrder;
 import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
+import javax.annotation.Nullable;
 
 public class BytesCodec extends dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.codec.core.BytesCodec implements Codec {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "bytes";
-  @Nonnull
+  @Nullable
   public final Configuration configuration;
 
   @JsonCreator
   public BytesCodec(
-      @Nonnull @JsonProperty(value = "configuration", required = true) Configuration configuration
+      @JsonProperty(value = "configuration") Configuration configuration
   ) {
     this.configuration = configuration;
   }
 
+  public BytesCodec() {
+    this((Configuration) null);
+  }
+
   public BytesCodec(Endian endian) {
     this(new BytesCodec.Configuration(endian));
   }
@@ -33,7 +40,10 @@ public long computeEncodedSize(long inputByteLength,
   }
 
   @Override
-  protected ByteOrder getByteOrder() {
+  protected ByteOrder getByteOrder() throws ZarrException {
+    if (configuration == null) {
+      throw new ZarrException("BytesCodec configuration is required to determine endianess.");
+    }
     return configuration.endian.getByteOrder();
   }
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/Crc32cCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/Crc32cCodec.java
index 823106d7..61329218 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/Crc32cCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/Crc32cCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.Codec;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.utils.CRC32C;
@@ -12,6 +13,7 @@
 
 public class Crc32cCodec extends  BytesBytesCodec implements Codec {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "crc32c";
 
   @JsonCreator
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/GzipCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/GzipCodec.java
index c197fc43..cb03b268 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/GzipCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/GzipCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.Codec;
@@ -17,6 +18,7 @@
 
 public class GzipCodec extends BytesBytesCodec implements Codec {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "gzip";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ShardingIndexedCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ShardingIndexedCodec.java
index dd30a930..6e598ab3 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ShardingIndexedCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ShardingIndexedCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
@@ -24,6 +25,7 @@
 
 public class ShardingIndexedCodec extends ArrayBytesCodec.WithPartialDecode implements Codec {
 
+  @JsonIgnore
   public final String name = "sharding_indexed";
   @Nonnull
   public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/TransposeCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/TransposeCodec.java
index 5eebefeb..c0855322 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/TransposeCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/TransposeCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.ZarrException;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.Codec;
@@ -16,6 +17,7 @@
 
 public class TransposeCodec extends ArrayArrayCodec implements Codec{
 
+    @JsonIgnore
     @Nonnull
     public final String name = "transpose";
     @Nonnull
diff --git a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ZstdCodec.java b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ZstdCodec.java
index 75d27f55..bc5304be 100644
--- a/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ZstdCodec.java
+++ b/src/main/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/v3/codec/core/ZstdCodec.java
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;
 import com.github.luben.zstd.Zstd;
 import com.github.luben.zstd.ZstdCompressCtx;
@@ -14,6 +15,7 @@
 
 public class ZstdCodec extends BytesBytesCodec implements Codec {
 
+    @JsonIgnore
     public final String name = "zstd";
     @Nonnull
     public final Configuration configuration;
diff --git a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrPythonTests.java b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrPythonTests.java
index e4e763ac..1f2899f3 100644
--- a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrPythonTests.java
+++ b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrPythonTests.java
@@ -150,9 +150,9 @@ static void assertIsTestdata(ucar.ma2.Array result, dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.DataT
 
     static Stream<Object[]> compressorAndDataTypeProviderV3() {
         Stream<Object[]> datatypeTests = Stream.of(
-//            DataType.BOOL,
-//            DataType.INT8,
-//            DataType.UINT8, // -> BUG: see https://github.com/zarr-developers/zarr-java/issues/27
+            DataType.BOOL,
+            DataType.INT8,
+            DataType.UINT8,
             DataType.INT16,
             DataType.UINT16,
             DataType.INT32,
@@ -203,7 +203,7 @@ public void testReadV3(String codec, String codecParam, DataType dataType) throw
         Assertions.assertArrayEquals(new int[]{2, 4, 8}, array.metadata().chunkShape());
         Assertions.assertEquals(42, array.metadata().attributes.get("answer"));
 
-        assertIsTestdata(result, DataType.INT32);
+        assertIsTestdata(result, dataType);
     }
 
     @ParameterizedTest
@@ -266,7 +266,7 @@ public void testWriteV3(String codec, String codecParam, DataType dataType) thro
         Assertions.assertArrayEquals(new int[]{2, 4, 8}, readArray.metadata().chunkShape());
         Assertions.assertEquals("test_value", readArray.metadata().attributes.get("test_key"));
 
-        assertIsTestdata(result, DataType.INT32);
+        assertIsTestdata(result, dataType);
 
         //read in zarr_python
         run_python_script("zarr_python_read.py", codec, codecParam, dataType.name().toLowerCase(), storeHandle.toPath().toString());
diff --git a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV2Test.java b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV2Test.java
index 765c51a4..eb79cc83 100644
--- a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV2Test.java
+++ b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV2Test.java
@@ -1,23 +1,28 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava;
 
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.JsonNode;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.FilesystemStore;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.store.StoreHandle;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Array;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.ArrayMetadata;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.DataType;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Group;
-import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.Node;
+import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v2.*;
 import org.junit.jupiter.api.Assertions;
 import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
 import org.junit.jupiter.params.ParameterizedTest;
 import org.junit.jupiter.params.provider.CsvSource;
+import org.junit.jupiter.params.provider.MethodSource;
 import org.junit.jupiter.params.provider.ValueSource;
 
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.nio.file.NoSuchFileException;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.nio.file.Paths;
+import java.util.function.Function;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
+import java.util.stream.Stream;
+
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Node.ZARRAY;
 
 public class ZarrV2Test extends ZarrTest {
     @ParameterizedTest
@@ -255,4 +260,32 @@ public void testCreateGroup() throws ZarrException, IOException {
         Group.create(storeHandleString);
         Assertions.assertTrue(Files.exists(Paths.get(storeHandleString).resolve(".zgroup")));
     }
+
+
+    static Stream<Function<ArrayMetadataBuilder, ArrayMetadataBuilder>> compressorBuilder() {
+        return Stream.of(
+                ArrayMetadataBuilder::withBloscCompressor,
+                ArrayMetadataBuilder::withZlibCompressor,
+                b -> b
+        );
+    }
+
+    @ParameterizedTest
+    @MethodSource("compressorBuilder")
+    public void testZarrJsonFormat(Function<ArrayMetadataBuilder, ArrayMetadataBuilder> compressorBuilder) throws ZarrException, IOException {
+        // regression test: ensure that 'id' keyword of codecs is only written once.
+        StoreHandle storeHandle = new FilesystemStore(TESTOUTPUT).resolve("testZarrJsonFormatV2").resolve(String.valueOf(compressorBuilder.hashCode()));
+        ArrayMetadataBuilder builder = Array.metadataBuilder()
+                .withShape(10, 10)
+                .withDataType(DataType.UINT8)
+                .withChunks(6, 6);
+        builder = compressorBuilder.apply(builder);
+        Array.create(storeHandle, builder.build());
+
+        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(storeHandle.resolve(ZARRAY).toPath())) {
+            String jsonInString = reader.lines().collect(Collectors.joining(System.lineSeparator()));
+            JsonNode JSON = new ObjectMapper().readTree(jsonInString);
+            Assertions.assertEquals(JSON.toPrettyString(), jsonInString);
+        }
+    }
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV3Test.java b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV3Test.java
index 7f1c15c7..cec859ac 100644
--- a/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV3Test.java
+++ b/src/test/java/dev/zarr/zarrjava/ZarrV3Test.java
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 package dev.zarr.zarrjava;
 
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.JsonNode;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
+import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.Codec;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core.BloscCodec;
 import dev.zarr.zarrjava.v3.codec.core.ShardingIndexedCodec;
 
@@ -29,9 +32,11 @@
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.function.Function;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import java.util.stream.Stream;
 
 import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.ArrayMetadata.parseFillValue;
+import static dev.zarr.zarrjava.core.Node.ZARR_JSON;
 import static org.junit.Assert.assertThrows;
 
 public class ZarrV3Test extends ZarrTest {
@@ -548,6 +553,7 @@ public void testCreateArray() throws ZarrException, IOException {
         Assertions.assertTrue(Files.exists(Paths.get(storeHandleString).resolve("zarr.json")));
     }
 
+
     @Test
     public void testCreateGroup() throws ZarrException, IOException {
         StoreHandle storeHandle = new FilesystemStore(TESTOUTPUT).resolve("testCreateGroupV3");
@@ -569,6 +575,60 @@ public void testCreateGroup() throws ZarrException, IOException {
         Assertions.assertEquals("world", group.metadata.attributes.get("hello"));
     }
 
+    @Test
+    public void testCodecWithoutConfiguration() throws ZarrException, IOException {
+        StoreHandle storeHandle = new FilesystemStore(TESTOUTPUT).resolve("testCodecWithoutConfigurationV3");
+        Array array = Array.create(storeHandle, Array.metadataBuilder()
+            .withShape(10, 10)
+            .withDataType(DataType.UINT8)
+            .withChunkShape(5, 5)
+            .withCodecs(CodecBuilder::withBytes)
+            .build()
+        );
+        Assertions.assertTrue(storeHandle.resolve(ZARR_JSON).exists());
+        Codec bytesCodec = array.metadata().codecs[0];
+        Assertions.assertInstanceOf(BytesCodec.class, bytesCodec);
+        Assertions.assertNull(((BytesCodec) bytesCodec).configuration);
+    }
+
+    static Stream<Function<CodecBuilder, CodecBuilder>> codecBuilders() {
+        return Stream.of(
+                CodecBuilder::withBlosc,
+                c -> c.withTranspose(new int[]{1, 0}),
+                CodecBuilder::withBytes,
+                CodecBuilder::withGzip,
+                CodecBuilder::withZstd,
+                c -> c.withSharding(new int[]{2, 2}),
+                CodecBuilder::withCrc32c
+        );
+    }
+    static Stream<Function<ArrayMetadataBuilder, ArrayMetadataBuilder>> chunkKeyEncodingsAndCodecs() {
+        Stream<Function<ArrayMetadataBuilder, ArrayMetadataBuilder>> builders = Stream.of(
+                ArrayMetadataBuilder::withDefaultChunkKeyEncoding,
+                ArrayMetadataBuilder::withV2ChunkKeyEncoding
+        );
+
+        return Stream.concat(builders, codecBuilders().map(codecFunc -> b -> b.withCodecs(codecFunc)));
+    }
+
+
+    @ParameterizedTest
+    @MethodSource("chunkKeyEncodingsAndCodecs")
+    public void testZarrJsonFormat(Function<ArrayMetadataBuilder, ArrayMetadataBuilder> chunkKeyEncodingsAndCodecs) throws ZarrException, IOException {
+        // regression test: ensure that 'name' keyword of named configurations (e.g. codecs) are only written once.
+        StoreHandle storeHandle = new FilesystemStore(TESTOUTPUT).resolve("testZarrJsonFormatV3").resolve(String.valueOf(chunkKeyEncodingsAndCodecs.hashCode()));
+        ArrayMetadataBuilder builder = Array.metadataBuilder()
+                .withShape(10, 10)
+                .withDataType(DataType.UINT8)
+                .withChunkShape(6, 6);
+        builder = chunkKeyEncodingsAndCodecs.apply(builder);
 
+        Array.create(storeHandle, builder.build());
 
+        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(storeHandle.resolve(ZARR_JSON).toPath())) {
+            String jsonInString = reader.lines().collect(Collectors.joining(System.lineSeparator()));
+            JsonNode JSON = new ObjectMapper().readTree(jsonInString);
+            Assertions.assertEquals(JSON.toPrettyString(), jsonInString);
+        }
+    }
 }