Alice Bundle Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup

1. Install the Bundle

   composer require hautelook/alice-bundle --dev
   

   Register in config/bundles.php (Symfony 4+):

   Hautelook\AliceBundle\HautelookAliceBundle::class => ['dev' => true],
   

2. Enable Fixtures Add to config/packages/hautelook_alice.yaml:

   hautelook_alice:
       connection: default # Your Doctrine connection
       locale: en_US       # Default locale for Faker
   

3. First Fixture Create a YAML file (e.g., config/fixtures/users.yml):

   App\Entity\User:
       user{1..10}:
           email: '<email>'
           username: '<userName>'
           roles: ['ROLE_USER']
   

   Load fixtures via CLI:

   php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load
   

4. Verify Check database records or use:

   php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:show
   

First Use Case: Local Development

• Scenario: Populate a posts table with 50 test records for frontend testing.
• Steps:
  1. Define config/fixtures/posts.yml:

     App\Entity\Post:
         post{1..50}:
             title: '<sentence>'
             content: '<paragraph>'
             publishedAt: '<dateTimeBetween>-1 year'
             author: '@user*' # Reference existing 'user' fixture
     

  2. Load fixtures:

     php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load --env=dev
     

  3. Test locally without touching production data.

Implementation Patterns

Workflows

1. Fixture Organization

• Modular Fixtures: Split fixtures by entity/domain (e.g., users.yml, posts.yml, orders.yml).
• Dependencies: Use @entity syntax to reference other fixtures (e.g., @user* for random users).
• Example:

  # config/fixtures/ecommerce.yml
  App\Entity\Order:
      order{1..20}:
          user: '@user*'
          items:
              - { product: '@product*', quantity: '<numberBetween(1,5)>', price: '<randomFloat(2,10,50)>' }
  

2. Environment-Specific Fixtures

• Use --env flag to load different fixtures per environment:

  # Load minimal data for CI
  php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load --env=test
  
  # Load full data for local dev
  php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load --env=dev
  

• Override fixture paths in config/packages/hautelook_alice.yaml:

  hautelook_alice:
      fixtures: ['%kernel.project_dir%/config/fixtures/{env}.yml']
  

3. Dynamic Data with Faker

• Leverage Faker’s methods for realistic data:

  App\Entity\Product:
      product{1..100}:
          name: '<commerceProductName>'
          price: '<randomFloat(2,10,1000)>'
          sku: '<isbn13>'
          description: '<paragraphs(3, true)>'
  

• Custom Faker Providers: Extend Faker for domain-specific data:

  // src/Faker/Provider/AppProvider.php
  namespace App\Faker\Provider;
  
  use Faker\Provider\Base;
  
  class AppProvider extends Base {
      public function fakeAppData() {
          return 'custom_' . $this->word;
      }
  }
  

  Register in config/packages/hautelook_alice.yaml:

  hautelook_alice:
      faker:
          providers: ['App\Faker\Provider\AppProvider']
  

4. Seeding Workflow

• Pre-Deployment: Load fixtures in phpunit.xml for consistent test environments:

  <env name="KERNEL_CLASS" value="App\Kernel"/>
  <env name="APP_ENV" value="test"/>
  <php>
      <env name="SYMFONY_DEPRECATIONS_HELPER" value="weak"/>
      <file>vendor/autoload.php</file>
      <file>config/bootstrap.php</file>
      <include file="config/packages/test/_fixtures.php"/>
      <exec dir="." command="php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load --env=test --append"/>
  </php>
  

Integration Tips

Doctrine Events

• Trigger actions after fixture loading (e.g., generate slugs):

  # config/fixtures/posts.yml
  App\Entity\Post:
      post{1..10}:
          title: '<sentence>'
          slug: ~ # Will be set via Doctrine lifecycle
  

  Add a subscriber:

  // src/EventSubscriber/FixtureSubscriber.php
  namespace App\EventSubscriber;
  
  use Doctrine\Common\EventSubscriber;
  use Doctrine\ORM\Event\LifecycleEventArgs;
  use Doctrine\ORM\Events;
  
  class FixtureSubscriber implements EventSubscriber {
      public function getSubscribedEvents() {
          return [Events::postPersist];
      }
  
      public function postPersist(LifecycleEventArgs $args) {
          $entity = $args->getObject();
          if ($entity instanceof \App\Entity\Post && empty($entity->getSlug())) {
              $entity->setSlug(\Ramsey\Uuid\Uuid::uuid4()->toString());
          }
      }
  }
  

Custom Fixture Loaders

• Extend Alice\Loader\NativeLoader for custom logic:

  // src/Loader/CustomLoader.php
  namespace App\Loader;
  
  use Alice\Loader\NativeLoader;
  use Doctrine\Common\Persistence\ObjectManager;
  
  class CustomLoader extends NativeLoader {
      protected function getObjectManager(): ObjectManager {
          $om = parent::getObjectManager();
          // Custom logic (e.g., set default tenant)
          return $om;
      }
  }
  

  Configure in config/packages/hautelook_alice.yaml:

  hautelook_alice:
      loader: App\Loader\CustomLoader
  

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. Fixture Order Dependencies

   • Issue: Loading posts.yml before users.yml fails if Post references User.
   • Fix: Use --append to load incrementally or define a clear order in config/packages/hautelook_alice.yaml:

     hautelook_alice:
         fixtures_order: ['users.yml', 'posts.yml', 'orders.yml']
     

2. Faker Locale Mismatch

   • Issue: <address> generates invalid data in non-English locales.
   • Fix: Set the correct locale in hautelook_alice.yaml or override per fixture:

     hautelook_alice:
         locale: fr_FR
     

     Or use Faker’s locale methods:

     App\Entity\User:
         user{1..5}:
             address: '<address>'
             # Override locale for this field
             phone: '<phoneNumber>@fr' # French phone number
     

3. Circular References

   • Issue: @post* in users.yml and @user* in posts.yml causes infinite loops.
   • Fix: Use * sparingly or limit references with min/max:

     App\Entity\User:
         user{1..10}:
             posts: '@post{1..3}' # Reference 1-3 posts
     

4. Doctrine Proxy Classes

   • Issue: Fixtures fail if proxies are enabled but lazy-loading triggers.
   • Fix: Disable proxies for fixtures or use ORM\AbstractQuery::HYDRATE_ARRAY:

     // In CustomLoader
     $query->setHydrationMode(\Doctrine\ORM\Query::HYDRATE_ARRAY);
     

5. Unique Constraints

   • Issue: <email> duplicates violate UNIQUE constraints.
   • Fix: Use Faker’s unique methods or custom providers:

     App\Entity\User:
         user{1..10}:
             email: '<uniqueEmail>'
     

Debugging

1. Dry Run Mode

   • Preview fixtures without loading:

     php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load --dry-run
     

2. Verbose Output

   • Enable debug mode for detailed logs:

     php bin/console hautelook:fixtures:load -vvv
     

3. Fixture Validation

   • Validate YAML syntax with:

     php bin/console debug:container --parameters