Getting Started

Install via Composer: composer require kelunik/link-header-rfc5988
Use the LinkHeader class to parse Link headers (e.g., from HTTP responses or requests)
First use case: parse a Link header string to extract relations and URIs, especially for Web Linking patterns like rel="next", rel="describedby", or rel="lrdd"
Start with LinkHeader::parse($headerString) — returns an array of Link objects, each containing uri, rel, and optional attributes (title, type, etc.)

Implementation Patterns

In middleware: Parse incoming/outgoing Link headers (e.g., in API responses for HAL or ActivityPub) to normalize or augment links
In HTTP clients: Extract pagination links (rel="next", rel="prev") from responses to auto-traverse paginated APIs
In link discovery workflows: Use parse() to locate endpoints like rel="http://webfinger.net/rel/profile-page" for user discovery (e.g., WebFinger)
Combine with sprintf or Header::addLink() to generate compliant headers if needed (note: this package is parser-only; generation requires manual header construction or complementary libraries)

The package is ** parser-only** — no serialization/back-composition support; build headers manually if needed -空格 and unusual quoting in header values can cause silent failures — always test with malformed inputs
Attributes are returned as array, case-sensitive keys (e.g., rel, title, type) — ensure correct casing (e.g., rel not Rel)
Since last release was in 2017, verify PHP compatibility (tested up to PHP 7.2); for newer apps, check if psr/http-message + community alternatives (e.g., nyholm/psr7 helpers) better fit your stack
Debug tip: json_encode(LinkHeader::parse($header)) for quick inspection of link structures