Phpcodesniffer Composer Installer Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup

1. Install the Plugin Add to your project's composer.json under require-dev:

   composer require --dev dealerdirect/phpcodesniffer-composer-installer
   

   Grant plugin execution permission (Composer 2.2+):

   composer config allow-plugins.dealerdirect/phpcodesniffer-composer-installer true
   

2. Add PHPCS Standards Require any phpcodesniffer-standard packages (e.g., phpcompatibility/php-compatibility):

   composer require --dev phpcompatibility/php-compatibility
   

3. Verify Installation Run composer install and test PHPCS:

   ./vendor/bin/phpcs -i  # Lists installed standards
   

First Use Case

• Automate PHPCS Setup: Replace manual installed_paths configuration in .phpcs.xml by letting Composer auto-detect and register standards from installed packages.

Implementation Patterns

Workflow Integration

1. Standardized PHPCS Setup

   • CI/CD Pipelines: Add to post-install-cmd in composer.json:

     "scripts": {
       "post-install-cmd": ["@install-codestandards"]
     }
     

   • Local Development: Run composer install to auto-configure PHPCS.

2. Custom Standards

   • Create a package with type: phpcodesniffer-standard and include it in require-dev:

     "require-dev": {
       "your-vendor/your-standard": "*"
     }
     

3. Search Depth Customization

   • Override default 3-level search depth in extra:

     "extra": {
       "phpcodesniffer-search-depth": 5
     }
     

Common Patterns

• Project-Wide Standards: Use phpcodesniffer-standard packages (e.g., squizlabs/php_codesniffer, wp-coding-standards/wpcs).
• Relative Paths: Standards in the project root are auto-detected (no symlinks needed).
• Script Hooks: Trigger plugin manually via composer run-script install-codestandards.

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. Composer 2.2+ Plugin Permission

   • Issue: Composer prompts for plugin execution permission on first run.
   • Fix: Preemptively add allow-plugins to composer.json or run:

     composer config allow-plugins.dealerdirect/phpcodesniffer-composer-installer true
     

2. Global vs. Local Plugin Conflict

   • Issue: Global Composer install may override local plugin version.
   • Fix: Use --prefer-dist or ensure local composer.json has the correct version.

3. Version Conflicts

   • Issue: Multiple standards requiring different plugin versions (e.g., ^0.7 vs. ^1.0).
   • Fix: Use flexible version constraints (e.g., * or ^0.7 || ^1.0).

Debugging Tips

• Verify Installed Standards: Run ./vendor/bin/phpcs -i to list detected standards.
• Check Search Paths: Debug with composer --verbose install to see plugin execution logs.
• Manual Trigger: Test plugin independently via:

  composer run-script install-codestandards
  

Extension Points

1. Custom Standards Paths

   • Override installed_paths in .phpcs.xml if auto-detection fails:

     <arg name="installed_paths" value="vendor/your-standard"/>
     

2. Post-Install Scripts

   • Chain with other scripts (e.g., phpunit):

     "scripts": {
       "test": ["@install-codestandards", "phpunit"]
     }
     

3. CI/CD Optimization

   • Cache vendor/ to avoid re-running the plugin on every build.

Quirks

• PHP_CodeSniffer 4.x: Requires plugin ^0.7.0+; older versions may need downgrading.
• Windows Paths: Use forward slashes (/) in installed_paths for cross-platform compatibility.