1Use in PHP {#flatbuffers_guide_use_php}
2==========
3
4## Before you get started
5
6Before diving into the FlatBuffers usage in PHP, it should be noted that
7the [Tutorial](@ref flatbuffers_guide_tutorial) page has a complete guide to
8general FlatBuffers usage in all of the supported languages
9(including PHP). This page is specifically designed to cover the nuances of
10FlatBuffers usage in PHP.
11
12You should also have read the [Building](@ref flatbuffers_guide_building)
13documentation to build `flatc` and should be familiar with
14[Using the schema compiler](@ref flatbuffers_guide_using_schema_compiler) and
15[Writing a schema](@ref flatbuffers_guide_writing_schema).
16
17## FlatBuffers PHP library code location
18
19The code for FlatBuffers PHP library can be found at `flatbuffers/php`. You
20can browse the library code on the [FlatBuffers
21GitHub page](https://github.com/google/flatbuffers/tree/master/php).
22
23## Testing the FlatBuffers JavaScript library
24
25The code to test the PHP library can be found at `flatbuffers/tests`.
26The test code itself is located in [phpTest.php](https://github.com/google/
27flatbuffers/blob/master/tests/phpTest.php).
28
29You can run the test with `php phpTest.php` from the command line.
30
31*Note: The PHP test file requires
32[PHP](http://php.net/manual/en/install.php) to be installed.*
33
34## Using theFlatBuffers PHP library
35
36*Note: See [Tutorial](@ref flatbuffers_guide_tutorial) for a more in-depth
37example of how to use FlatBuffers in PHP.*
38
39FlatBuffers supports both reading and writing FlatBuffers in PHP.
40
41To use FlatBuffers in your own code, first generate PHP classes from your schema
42with the `--php` option to `flatc`. Then you can include both FlatBuffers and
43the generated code to read or write a FlatBuffer.
44
45For example, here is how you would read a FlatBuffer binary file in PHP:
46First, include the library and generated code (using the PSR `autoload`
47function). Then you can read a FlatBuffer binary file, which you
48pass the contents of to the `GetRootAsMonster` function:
49
50~~~{.php}
51 // It is recommended that your use PSR autoload when using FlatBuffers in PHP.
52 // Here is an example:
53 function __autoload($class_name) {
54 // The last segment of the class name matches the file name.
55 $class = substr($class_name, strrpos($class_name, "\\") + 1);
56 $root_dir = join(DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR, array(dirname(dirname(__FILE__)))); // `flatbuffers` root.
57
58 // Contains the `*.php` files for the FlatBuffers library and the `flatc` generated files.
59 $paths = array(join(DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR, array($root_dir, "php")),
60 join(DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR, array($root_dir, "tests", "MyGame", "Example")));
61 foreach ($paths as $path) {
62 $file = join(DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR, array($path, $class . ".php"));
63 if (file_exists($file)) {
64 require($file);
65 break;
66 }
67 }
68
69 // Read the contents of the FlatBuffer binary file.
70 $filename = "monster.dat";
71 $handle = fopen($filename, "rb");
72 $contents = $fread($handle, filesize($filename));
73 fclose($handle);
74
75 // Pass the contents to `GetRootAsMonster`.
76 $monster = \MyGame\Example\Monster::GetRootAsMonster($contents);
77~~~
78
79Now you can access values like this:
80
81~~~{.php}
82 $hp = $monster->GetHp();
83 $pos = $monster->GetPos();
84~~~
85
86## Text Parsing
87
88There currently is no support for parsing text (Schema's and JSON) directly
89from PHP.
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