sfEntityAttributeValuePlugin

The sfEntityAttributeValuePlugin is a symfony plugin that allows use of the Entity-Attribute-Value data-model as a doctrine behavior.

This plugin provides a way to easily create dynamic fields with jQuery Form Builder Plugin and bind then to a specific object (DB line) of your model. It also allow you to fill in these fields from other models that have a ManyToOne relation with the first one. And finally, these stored EAV can be exploited in edit/read mode.

Installation

• Install the plugin

  $ symfony plugin:install sfEntityAttributeValuePlugin 

• Activate the plugin in your project configuration file (in config/ProjectConfiguration.class.php).

  class ProjectConfiguration extends sfProjectConfiguration
  {
      public function setup()
      {
          //...
          $this->enablePlugins('sfEntityAttributeValuePlugin');
      }
  }

• Apply the EAV behavior to your model in your schema file config/doctrine/schema.yml , ie: Assume that we want to bind dynamic fields to each object of a model called "ParentModel" and then insert data in these fields from a 'ChildModel' who is related as ManyToOne to the "ParentModel", the schema will contain config like this:

  ParentModel:
    actAs: 
      EavBehavior:       
        mode: create
      columns:
        ...
  
  ChildModel:
    actAs: 
      EavBehavior:       
        mode: insert
        parent_resource: ParentModel
      columns:
        parent_model_id:            { type: integer }
        ...
    relations:
      ParentModel:                  { local: parent_model_id, foreign: id }

• Build Eav models and create tables :

  $ symfony doctrine:build --all

  alternatively you could build the models, the sql, then run the sql manually

• Build (or update) the global resource file to affect unique id for all your models

  $ symfony eav:init-config

  Important note: this task will create/update the file resources.yml that hold the models ids, do not change manually this files, this may damage your EAV structure!

• Activate the "eav" module in the settings.yml:

  all:
    .settings:
      enabled_modules: [ default, eav ]

• publish assets

  $ symfony plugin:publish-assets

• Clear your cache

  $ symfony cc

• Add the sfWidgetFormEav as a widgetSchema in all forms that have the EavBehavior. The sfEntityAttributeValuePlugin is enough smart to render the widget in create or insert mode.

  # lib/form/doctrine/ParentModelForm.php
  class ParentModelForm extends BaseParentModelForm
  {
      public function configure()
      {
          $this->widgetSchema['eav'] = new sfWidgetFormEav($this);
      }
  }
  
  # lib/form/doctrine/ChildModelForm.php
  class ChildModelForm extends BaseChildModelForm
  {
      public function configure()
      {
          $this->widgetSchema['eav'] = new sfWidgetFormEav($this);
      }
  }

• Add the widget "eav" in the form partial

  # _form.php
  echo $form['eav']-> renderRow();

(future improvements)

Ajax eav child binder: when editing a child entity, eav structure will be updated via Ajax.

Smart EAV tables cleaner: to clean obsolete data from eav tables.

Required Field support

Sortable EAV