Php Console Highlighter Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup

1. Installation:

   composer require jakub-onderka/php-console-highlighter
   

   Ensure your composer.json includes the package under require.

2. Basic Usage:

   use JakubOnderka\PhpConsoleHighlighter\Highlighter;
   use JakubOnderka\PhpConsoleColor\ConsoleColor;
   
   $highlighter = new Highlighter(new ConsoleColor());
   $highlighted = $highlighter->getWholeFile(file_get_contents('path/to/file.php'));
   echo $highlighted;
   

3. First Use Case: Highlight a single PHP file in a CLI script (e.g., for debugging or documentation generation):

   $filePath = 'app/Services/UserService.php';
   echo $highlighter->getWholeFile(file_get_contents($filePath));
   

Implementation Patterns

Core Workflows

1. Syntax Highlighting in CLI Tools: Integrate into custom CLI commands (e.g., php artisan extensions) to display code snippets with syntax highlighting:

   // In a custom Artisan command
   $this->info($highlighter->getWholeFile($this->getFileContent()));
   

2. Dynamic Code Display: Use in Laravel’s telescope:commands or debugbar extensions to show highlighted code blocks in logs or debug panels.

3. API Responses: Highlight code snippets in JSON API responses (e.g., for error messages or documentation endpoints):

   return response()->json([
       'error' => 'Invalid query',
       'example' => $highlighter->highlight('SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ?;')
   ]);
   

4. Service Provider Bootstrapping: Bind the highlighter to the container for global access:

   // In AppServiceProvider
   $this->app->singleton(Highlighter::class, function ($app) {
       return new Highlighter(new ConsoleColor());
   });
   

   Then inject via constructor:

   public function __construct(private Highlighter $highlighter) {}
   

5. Partial Highlighting: Highlight specific code segments (e.g., from a string or file range):

   $code = '<?php class User { public $name; }';
   echo $highlighter->highlight($code);
   

Integration Tips

• Laravel Blade: Use in Blade templates for CLI-generated outputs (e.g., @verbatim + highlighted code).
• Artisan Commands: Extend Artisan::command() to output highlighted code for help or inspect subcommands.
• Testing: Highlight test failures or assertions in custom test listeners:

  $this->failures[] = $highlighter->highlight($failedTestCode);
  

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. Deprecated Package:

   • The repository is abandoned (last release: 2018). Prefer alternatives like php-parallel-lint/PHP-Console-Highlighter.
   • No PHP 8+ support; may break with newer PHP versions.

2. Tokenizer Dependency:

   • Requires the ext-tokenizer extension. Verify with:

     php -m | grep tokenizer
     

   • Fallback: Use a polyfill like nikic/php-parser if tokenizer is unavailable.

3. Performance:

   • Highlighting large files (e.g., vendor/ or node_modules/) may cause memory issues. Stream content or limit file sizes:

     $highlighter->highlight(file_get_contents($filePath, false, null, 0, 1024 * 100)); // Read first 100KB
     

4. Color Compatibility:

   • ANSI colors may not render in all terminals (e.g., Windows CMD). Test in xterm, iTerm2, or enable ANSI support in CMD:

     reg add HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Console /v VirtualTerminalLevel /t REG_DWORD /d 1
     

Debugging

• Invalid Code:

  • The highlighter may crash on malformed PHP. Wrap usage in a try-catch:

    try {
        echo $highlighter->highlight($invalidCode);
    } catch (\Exception $e) {
        echo "Error highlighting code: " . $e->getMessage();
    }
    

  • Use highlight_string() as a fallback for broken code.

• Custom Themes:

  • Extend ConsoleColor to modify syntax colors (e.g., for dark terminals):

    $customColor = new ConsoleColor();
    $customColor->setStyle('keyword', 'bold yellow');
    $highlighter = new Highlighter($customColor);
    

Extension Points

1. Custom Highlighters:

   • Implement JakubOnderka\PhpConsoleHighlighter\HighlighterInterface for custom logic (e.g., language-specific highlighting).

2. File Caching:

   • Cache highlighted files to avoid reprocessing:

     $cacheKey = 'highlighted_' . md5($filePath);
     $highlighted = Cache::remember($cacheKey, now()->addHours(1), function () use ($highlighter, $filePath) {
         return $highlighter->getWholeFile(file_get_contents($filePath));
     });
     

3. Web Integration:

   • Convert ANSI colors to HTML/CSS for web use (e.g., with spatie/array-to-html + custom ANSI-to-CSS mapping).