EDUCBA

EDUCBA

MENUMENU
  • Free Tutorials
  • Free Courses
  • Certification Courses
  • 600+ Courses All in One Bundle
  • Login

PHP Reflection

Home » Software Development » Software Development Tutorials » PHP Tutorial » PHP Reflection

PHP Reflection

Introduction to PHP Reflection

Reflection of PHP Programming Language usually defined as some program’s ability of inspecting itself and then modifying the logic itself at the time of program execution. In normal terms the reflection of PHP is useful in asking the object which tells you about some of its methods and the properties and those altering members and those altering members may even contains the private ones. Without the PHP reflection concept, the duck-typing is mostly impossible in implementing. Reflection concept of PHP helps in identifying the methods which cannot or can be called on some received object. It is the most useful concept in the PHP programming language just like some special programming languages like Java, Ruby, etc.

Syntax:

Start Your Free Software Development Course

Web development, programming languages, Software testing & others

<?php
Class myClass1{
…
}
$myClassObj = new myClass();
$myClassRef = new ReflectionClass($myClassObj);
?>

Instead of ReflectionClass() we can use different types of Reflection Classes based on our requirement.

How Does Reflection Work in PHP?

The reflection concept of the PHP Programming Language basically wor5ks just by defining the ability to inspect the program itself and then it helps in modifying the logic itself at the exact instance of the time of the program execution.

Types of Classes in PHP Reflection

There are some different types of classes available which helps in the working of the PHP Reflection concept.

1. ReflectionClass Class: The ReflectionClass is helpful in providing information about the specific class

2. ReflectionFunction Class: The ReflectionClass is helpful in reporting the information about a specific function

Popular Course in this category
PHP Training (5 Courses, 3 Project)5 Online Courses | 3 Hands-on Project | 28+ Hours | Verifiable Certificate of Completion | Lifetime Access
4.5 (5,731 ratings)
Course Price

View Course

Related Courses
Java Servlet Training (6 Courses, 12 Projects)All in One Software Development Bundle (600+ Courses, 50+ projects)

3. ReflectionMethod: The ReflectionMethod is helpful in reporting the information about a specific method

4. ReflectionParameter: The ReflectionParameter is helpful in retrieving the information about the specific method’s or specific function’s parameters.

5. ReflectionProperty Class: The ReflectionProperty Class is helpful in providing information about some properties.

6. ReflectionObject Class: The ReflectionObject Class is helpful in providing information about a specific object.

Methods in PHP Reflection

The PHP Reflection Class is available with different methods.

1. getProperties Method: The getProperties Method of the PHP ReflectionClass is helpful in getting all the class properties.

2. getMethods Method: The getMethods Method of the PHP ReflectionClass Class is helpful in getting all the methods of the specific class.

3. getDocComment Method: The getDocComment Method of the PHP ReflectionClass Class is helpful in getting the specific Class Document Comment.

4. getFileName Method: The getFileName Method of the PHP ReflectionClass Class is helpful in getting the file name of the specific file where the specific class is defined.

5. getParentClass Method: The getParentClass Method of the PHP ReflectionClass Class is helpful in getting the parent class.

6. hasMethod Method: The hasMethod method of the PHP ReflectionClass Class is helpful in checking whether the specific method is defined or not.

Examples to Implement PHP Reflection

Now, we will see PHP Reflection property with the examples as described below:

Example #1

This is the example of implementing the Reflection Concept of the PHP Programming Language. Here at first a class “X1” is created with no content in it. Then class_alias() function is used with “X1”, “Y1” and “Y1“, “Z1”. Then a new variable called “Z1” is created with the new ReflectionClass concept. Then it’s object/method is called with the help of the echo statement and with the help of the getName() function. This program is mainly used for the reflection of the specifically resolved class. Check out the output so that you can understand the reflection is done and shows the X1 class only as a display print.

Code:

<?php
class X1 {
}
class_alias('X1','Y1');
class_alias('Y1','Z1');
$z1 = new ReflectionClass('Z1');
echo $z1->getName(); // X1
?>

Output:

PHP Reflection Example 1

Example #2

This is the example of implementing the ReflectionMethod Class Concept of the PHP Programming Language. Here at the first inside of the PHP tags, Class A1 is created with the public function_construct() then class B1 is created which helps in extending to the A1. Then a variable called “method1” is created with the new ReflectionMethod() Then method1’s object will be printed with the help of the echo statement. Then the PHP tags will be closed. Here the public member’s class which actually contains the name of the specific class in which the specific method has to be defined. Check out the output which shows “A1” as output because of the reflection concept.

Code:

<?php
class A1 {public function __construct() {}}
class B1 extends A1 {}
$method1 = new ReflectionMethod('B1', '__construct');
echo $method1->class; // prints 'A1'
?>

Output:

function __construct() {} Example 2

Example #3

This is the example of the PHP code snippet of the Reflection Concept. Here I created a simple class with only just two properties and also with two methods. Here we used some reflection classes which are used to populate the specific properties dynamically and then I make them to print. Here at first, a class A1 is created then constructors are created. Then echo is used to print the object variables then new objects are created and then used ReflectionClass() and then foreach concept is used to print different values that are present inside the class A1. Just check the PHP Reflection example to understand the output.

Code:

<?php
class A1
{
public $one1 = '';
public $two1 = '';
//PHP Constructor
public function __construct()
{
//PHP Constructor
}
//print variable one1
public function echoOne1()
{
echo $this->one1."\n";
}
//print variable two1
public function echoTwo1()
{
echo $this->two1."\n";
}
}
//Instantiate the PHP object
$a1 = new A1();
//Instantiate the PHP reflection object
$reflector1 = new ReflectionClass('A1');
//Now i am getting all the properties from class A1 in to $properties1 array
$properties1 = $reflector1->getProperties();
$i1 =11;
//Now go through the PHP $properties1 array and populate each property1
foreach($properties1 as $property1)
{
//Populating properties1
$a1->{$property1->getName()}=$i1;
//Invoking the PHP method here to print with echo statement which was actually populated
$a1->{"echo".ucfirst($property1->getName())}()."\n";
$i1++;
}
?>

Output:

Populating properties1 Example 3

Advantages of PHP Reflection

Below are the advantages of PHP Reflection:

  1. With the reflection concept, Dynamic typing is possible.
  2. Aspect-Oriented Programming is possible with PHP Reflection just by listening from the method calls and then places the code around some methods.
  3. It is very helpful like other frameworks.
  4. It helps in initializing the models, constructing all the objects for views, and many more. Laravel helps the usage of reflection concepts which helps in injecting dependencies.
  5. It helps in meta programming.
  6. It helps in understanding the code with the help of the code analysis frameworks.
  7. HTML Form Generation.
  8. Helps in creating some Database Tables.
  9. Helps in creating some documentation of the poorly documented third parties class/classes.
  10. Helps in accessing private methods and private properties.

Conclusion

we hope you learned what is the definition on PHP reflection along with its syntax and explanation, How the Reflection works in PHP Programming Language script along with various examples of PHP reflection, Advantages of PHP Reflection, etc. to understand Reflection of PHP concept better.

Recommended Article

This is a guide to the PHP Reflection. Here we discuss the Introduction of PHP Reflection and its features along with advantages. You can also go through our other suggested articles to learn more –

  1. Overview of Abstract Class in Python
  2. What is Abstract Class in PHP?
  3. Socket Programming in PHP with Methods
  4. PHP chop() | How to Work?

PHP Training (5 Courses, 3 Project)

5 Online Courses

3 Hands-on Project

28+ Hours

Verifiable Certificate of Completion

Lifetime Access

Learn More

0 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share
Primary Sidebar
PHP Tutorial
  • Functions
    • Functions in PHP
    • PHP Math Functions
    • PHP Recursive Function
    • PHP String Functions
    • Hashing Function in PHP
    • Date Function in PHP
    • PHP Anonymous Function
    • Calendar in PHP
    • PHP Call Function
    • PHP Pass by Reference
    • PHP ucfirst()
    • PHP ucwords()
    • trim() in PHP
    • isset() Function in PHP
    • PHP replace
    • PHP fpm
    • PHP strpos
    • preg_match in PHP
    • PHP preg_replace()
    • PHP ob_start()
    • PHP Reflection
    • PHP Split String
    • PHP URL
    • PHP preg_match_all
    • PHP strtoupper()
    • PHP preg_split()
    • PHP substr_replace()
    • PHP setlocale()
    • PHP substr_count()
    • PHP Serialize
    • PHP strlen()
    • PHP async
    • PHP Date Time Functions
    • PHP timezone
    • PHP Data Object
    • print_r() in PHP
    • PHP header()
    • PHP strip_tags()
    • PHP chop()
    • PHP MD5()
    • PHP unset()
    • PHP crypt()
    • PHP wordwrap()
    • PHP is_null()
    • PHP strtok()
    • PHP bin2hex()
    • PHP parse_str()
    • PHP levenshtein()
    • PHP addslashes()
    • PHP strtotime
    • PHP sha1()
    • PHP explode()
    • PHP sscanf()
    • PHP require_once
    • PHP Zip Files
    • PHP $_SERVER
    • PHP $_POST
    • PHP Include and Require
    • PHP POST Method
  • PHP Basic
    • Introduction To PHP
    • What is PHP
    • PHP Keywords
    • Advantages of PHP
    • Career In PHP
    • Comments in PHP
    • PHP Commands
    • PHP Frameworks
    • PHP Compiler
    • Variables in PHP
    • PHP Superglobal Variables
    • PHP Versions
    • Object in PHP
    • What is Drupal
    • Top PHP Frameworks
    • WebStorm IDE
    • What is phpMyAdmin?
    • PhpStorm
    • Install phpMyAdmin
    • Phalcon Model
  • Data Types
    • PHP Data Types
    • PHP Integer
    • PHP Booleans
  • Operators
    • PHP Operators
    • Arithmetic Operators in PHP
    • Comparison Operators in PHP
    • Logical Operators in PHP
    • Bitwise Operators in PHP
    • Ternary Operator in PHP
    • PHP String Operators
  • Control Statements
    • Control Statement in PHP
    • PHP if Statement
    • if else Statement in PHP
    • elseif in PHP
    • PHP Switch Statement
    • Continue in PHP
    • Break in PHP
  • Loops
    • PHP Loops
    • For Loop in PHP
    • PHP Do While Loop
    • PHP While Loop
    • While Loop in PHP
    • Foreach Loop in PHP
  • Constructor
    • Constructor in PHP
    • Destructor in PHP
  • State Management
    • Cookie in PHP
    • Sessions in PHP
  • Array
    • What is PHP Array
    • Arrays in PHP
    • 2D Arrays in PHP
    • Associative Array in PHP 
    • Multidimensional Array in PHP
    • Indexed Array in PHP
    • PHP Array Functions
    • PHP unset Array
    • PHP Append Array
    • PHP Array Search
    • PHP Split Array
    • PHP array_push()
    • PHP array_pop()
  • Advanced
    • Overloading in PHP
    • Overriding in PHP
    • Method Overloading in PHP
    • Inheritance in PHP
    • Multiple Inheritance in PHP
    • PHP Interface
    • Encapsulation in PHP
    • PHP Constants
    • PHP Magic Constants
    • PHP Regular Expressions
    • PHP GET Method
    • PHP Annotations
    • PHP Encryption
    • PHP file Functions
    • PHP readfile
    • PHP?Write File
    • PHP Append File
    • PHP Type Hinting
    • PHP Filters
    • PHP Float
    • PHP Form
    • PHP Form Validation
    • Sorting in PHP
    • PHP usort()
    • PHP Stack Trace
    • PHP Stack Overflow
    • PHP Pagination
    • PHP implode
    • Polymorphism in PHP
    • Abstract Class in PHP
    • PHP Final Class
    • PHP Custom Exception
    • error_reporting() in PHP
    • PHP Log Errors
    • Access Modifiers in PHP
    • PHP Change Date Format
    • Static Method in PHP
    • PHP File Handling
    • PHP Output Buffering
    • Get IP Address in PHP
    • Upload a File in PHP
    • String in PHP
    • Public Function in PHP
    • Private in PHP
    • Protected in PHP
    • basename in PHP
    • Validation in PHP
    • PHP mail()
    • PHP Email Form
    • PHP Directory
    • PHP Create Session
    • PHP include_once
    • PHP json_decode
    • PHP XMLWriter
    • PHP XML Reader
    • PHP XML Parser
    • PHP XML into Array
    • Phalcon Framework
  • Programs
    • Patterns in PHP
    • Star Patterns in PHP
    • Swapping in PHP
    • Fibonacci Series PHP
    • Factorial in PHP
    • Reverse String in PHP
    • Square Root in PHP
    • Random Number Generator in PHP
    • Palindrome in PHP
    • Prime Numbers in PHP
    • Armstrong Number in PHP
    • Socket Programming in PHP
    • Login Page in PHP
    • PHP Login Template
    • PHP Object to String
  • Database
    • PHP Database Connection
    • How to Connect Database to PHP
  • Interview Questions
    • PHP Interview Questions
    • PHP OOP Interview Questions
    • CakePHP Interview Questions
    • Core PHP Interview Questions

Related Courses

PHP Training Course

Java Servlet Training

Software Development Course Training

Footer
About Us
  • Blog
  • Who is EDUCBA?
  • Sign Up
  • Corporate Training
  • Certificate from Top Institutions
  • Contact Us
  • Verifiable Certificate
  • Reviews
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  •  
Apps
  • iPhone & iPad
  • Android
Resources
  • Free Courses
  • Java Tutorials
  • Python Tutorials
  • All Tutorials
Certification Courses
  • All Courses
  • Software Development Course - All in One Bundle
  • Become a Python Developer
  • Java Course
  • Become a Selenium Automation Tester
  • Become an IoT Developer
  • ASP.NET Course
  • VB.NET Course
  • PHP Course

© 2020 - EDUCBA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THE CERTIFICATION NAMES ARE THE TRADEMARKS OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

EDUCBA
Free Software Development Course

Web development, programming languages, Software testing & others

*Please provide your correct email id. Login details for this Free course will be emailed to you
Book Your One Instructor : One Learner Free Class

Let’s Get Started

This website or its third-party tools use cookies, which are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the cookie policy. By closing this banner, scrolling this page, clicking a link or continuing to browse otherwise, you agree to our Privacy Policy

EDUCBA

*Please provide your correct email id. Login details for this Free course will be emailed to you
EDUCBA Login

Forgot Password?

EDUCBA
Free Software Development Course

Web development, programming languages, Software testing & others

*Please provide your correct email id. Login details for this Free course will be emailed to you

Special Offer - PHP Training (5 Courses, 3 Project) Learn More