Router V2 Helper Functions - Usage Guide

Two Ways to Use Helpers

Router V2 provides TWO equivalent APIs for maximum flexibility:

1. Procedural API (Global Functions) ?

Clean, simple, Laravel-like syntax:

// In controllers
$url = route('user.show', ['id' => 123]);
redirect('admin.dashboard');
$fullUrl = url('/admin/users');

// In views
<a href="<?= route('user.edit', ['id' => $user['id']]) ?>">Edit</a>
<form method="POST" action="<?= route('user.update', ['id' => $user['id']]) ?>">
    <?= csrf_field() ?>
    <input name="username" value="<?= old('username') ?>">
</form>

2. OOP API (Static Methods)

Explicit, namespaced, modern PHP:

use upMVC\Helpers;

// In controllers
$url = Helpers::route('user.show', ['id' => 123]);
Helpers::redirect('admin.dashboard');
$fullUrl = Helpers::url('/admin/users');

// In views
<a href="<?= Helpers::route('user.edit', ['id' => $user['id']]) ?>">Edit</a>

Complete Function Reference

Routing & URLs

| Function | OOP Equivalent | Purpose | Example | |----------|----------------|---------|---------| | route() | Helpers::route() | Generate URL from named route | route('user.show', ['id' => 1]) | | url() | Helpers::url() | Full URL with BASE_URL | url('/admin/users') | | asset() | Helpers::asset() | Asset URL | asset('css/style.css') | | redirect() | Helpers::redirect() | Navigate to URL/route | redirect('admin.dashboard') |

Forms & Security

| Function | OOP Equivalent | Purpose | Example | |----------|----------------|---------|---------| | csrf_field() | Helpers::csrfField() | CSRF hidden input | <?= csrf_field() ?> | | csrf_token() | Helpers::csrfToken() | Get CSRF token | csrf_token() | | old() | Helpers::old() | Form repopulation | old('username') |

Data & Config

| Function | OOP Equivalent | Purpose | Example | |----------|----------------|---------|---------| | session() | Helpers::session() | Get session value | session('user_id') | | config() | Helpers::config() | Get config value | config('app.name') | | env() | Helpers::env() | Get env variable | env('DB_HOST') |

Responses

| Function | OOP Equivalent | Purpose | Example | |----------|----------------|---------|---------| | view() | Helpers::view() | Render view | view('admin.dashboard', $data) | | abort() | Helpers::abort() | HTTP error | abort(404, 'Not found') | | json() | Helpers::json() | JSON response | json(['success' => true]) |

Debugging

| Function | OOP Equivalent | Purpose | Example | |----------|----------------|---------|---------| | dd() | N/A | Dump and die | dd($user, $data) | | dump() | N/A | Dump without dying | dump($query) |

Usage Examples

Named Routes with Global Functions

// routes/Routes.php - Define named routes
$router->addParamRoute('/users/{id:int}', User\Controller::class, 'show', [], [
    'id' => '\d+'
])->name('user.show');

$router->addParamRoute('/users/{id:int}/edit', User\Controller::class, 'edit', [], [
    'id' => '\d+'
])->name('user.edit');

// Controller.php - Generate URLs
public function index() {
    $users = $this->model->getAllUsers();
    
    foreach ($users as $user) {
        // Generate edit URL for each user
        $editUrl = route('user.edit', ['id' => $user['id']]);
        echo "Edit: $editUrl\n";
    }
}

// Redirect after save
public function update($reqRoute, $reqMet) {
    $userId = $_GET['id'];
    $this->model->update($userId, $_POST);
    
    redirect('user.show', ['id' => $userId]);
}

Form with CSRF Protection

<!-- View: user_form.php -->
<form method="POST" action="<?= route('user.update', ['id' => $user['id']]) ?>">
    <?= csrf_field() ?>
    
    <input type="text" name="username" value="<?= old('username', $user['username']) ?>">
    <input type="email" name="email" value="<?= old('email', $user['email']) ?>">
    
    <button type="submit">Update User</button>
</form>

Navigation with Named Routes

<!-- View: navigation.php -->
<nav>
    <a href="<?= route('admin.dashboard') ?>">Dashboard</a>
    <a href="<?= route('admin.users') ?>">Users</a>
    
    <?php if ($currentUser): ?>
        <a href="<?= route('user.profile', ['id' => $currentUser['id']]) ?>">
            My Profile
        </a>
    <?php endif; ?>
</nav>

Debugging

// Controller.php
public function debug() {
    $user = $this->model->find(1);
    $posts = $this->model->getPostsByUser(1);
    
    // Dump and die - stops execution
    dd($user, $posts);
    
    // Or just dump and continue
    dump($user);
    echo "Script continues...";
}

Which API Should You Use?

Use Procedural API (Global Functions) When:

• ? Writing views (cleaner syntax)
• ? Quick prototyping
• ? You prefer Laravel/Symfony style
• ? Less typing, more readability

Use OOP API (Static Methods) When:

• ? You prefer explicit imports
• ? Working in namespaced code
• ? IDE autocomplete is important
• ? You prefer PSR style

Both Work Perfectly! ?

// These are IDENTICAL:
$url1 = route('user.show', ['id' => 123]);
$url2 = Helpers::route('user.show', ['id' => 123]);

// Same result, different style preference
echo $url1 === $url2; // true

Implementation Notes

How It Works

1. helpers_functions.php defines global functions
2. Each function wraps the corresponding `Helpers::` method
3. Loaded in `Start.php` before routing
4. Both APIs available throughout application

// etc/helpers_functions.php
function route(string $name, array $params = []): string
{
    return Helpers::route($name, $params);
}

Function Existence Check

All functions use function_exists() to avoid conflicts:

if (!function_exists('route')) {
    function route(string $name, array $params = []): string {
        return Helpers::route($name, $params);
    }
}

This allows you to override or disable specific functions if needed.

Migration from Helpers:: to Global Functions

Before (OOP API):

use upMVC\Helpers;

class Controller {
    public function show($reqRoute, $reqMet) {
        $userId = $_GET['id'];
        $user = $this->model->find($userId);
        
        $editUrl = Helpers::route('user.edit', ['id' => $userId]);
        $profileUrl = Helpers::url('/profile');
        
        if (!$user) {
            Helpers::redirect('users.index');
        }
        
        $data = ['user' => $user, 'editUrl' => $editUrl];
        Helpers::view('user.show', $data);
    }
}

After (Procedural API):

class Controller {
    public function show($reqRoute, $reqMet) {
        $userId = $_GET['id'];
        $user = $this->model->find($userId);
        
        $editUrl = route('user.edit', ['id' => $userId]);
        $profileUrl = url('/profile');
        
        if (!$user) {
            redirect('users.index');
        }
        
        $data = ['user' => $user, 'editUrl' => $editUrl];
        view('user.show', $data);
    }
}

Cleaner, shorter, more readable! ?

Router V2 Complete Feature Set

With global helper functions, Router V2 now provides:

1. ? Type Casting - `{id:int}` auto-casts
2. ? Validation - Regex constraints
3. ? Named Routes - `->name('user.show')`
4. ? Route Grouping - Auto prefix optimization
5. ? Global Helpers - `route()`, `url()`, `redirect()`
6. ? OOP Helpers - `Helpers::route()` still available

Full Router V2 implementation complete! ?