Group Security Bundle Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup

1. Installation

   composer require midnightluke/group-security-bundle
   

   Add to config/app.php under providers:

   MidnightLuke\GroupSecurityBundle\GroupSecurityBundle::class,
   

   Publish config (optional):

   php artisan vendor:publish --provider="MidnightLuke\GroupSecurityBundle\GroupSecurityBundle" --tag="config"
   

2. First Use Case

   • Define a group in config/group_security.php:

     'groups' => [
         'admin' => [
             'roles' => ['ROLE_ADMIN'],
             'permissions' => ['create_user', 'delete_user'],
         ],
     ],
     

   • Use in a controller:

     use MidnightLuke\GroupSecurityBundle\Security\GroupSecurity;
     
     public function index(GroupSecurity $groupSecurity)
     {
         if ($groupSecurity->hasGroup('admin')) {
             return view('admin.dashboard');
         }
         abort(403);
     }
     

Implementation Patterns

Role-Based Workflows

• Group Assignment Assign groups to users via middleware or event listeners:

  // Example: Assign 'editor' group after registration
  public function registered(UserRegistered $event)
  {
      $event->user->groups()->attach('editor');
  }
  

• Permission Checks Use GroupSecurity service in controllers/services:

  if ($groupSecurity->hasPermission('delete_user')) {
      $user->delete();
  }
  

Integration with Laravel Features

• Policy Integration Extend existing policies:

  public function delete(User $user, User $model)
  {
      return $user->hasPermission('delete_user');
  }
  

• Middleware Protect routes:

  Route::get('/admin', function () {
      // ...
  })->middleware('group:admin');
  

• API Gate (Lumen/SPA)

  $this->gate->define('edit-post', function ($user) {
      return $user->hasPermission('edit_post');
  });
  

Dynamic Group Management

• Runtime Group Assignment

  $groupSecurity->assignGroupToUser($userId, 'moderator', 30); // TTL in minutes
  

• Group-Based Data Filtering

  $posts = Post::whereHas('author.groups', function ($query) {
      $query->where('name', 'editor');
  })->get();
  

Gotchas and Tips

Common Pitfalls

• Caching Issues Clear config cache after modifying group_security.php:

  php artisan config:clear
  

  Groups are cached by default for performance.

• Case Sensitivity Group names/permissions are case-sensitive unless configured otherwise.

• Database Schema Ensure groups and group_user tables exist (migrations are not auto-published). Use:

  php artisan vendor:publish --provider="MidnightLuke\GroupSecurityBundle\GroupSecurityBundle" --tag="migrations"
  

Debugging Tips

• Log Group Assignments Enable debug mode in config:

  'debug' => env('GROUP_SECURITY_DEBUG', false),
  

  Logs will appear in storage/logs/laravel.log.

• Check User Groups

  $user->groups; // Collection of assigned groups
  $groupSecurity->getUserGroups($userId);
  

Extension Points

• Custom Storage Override storage engine via config:

  'storage' => [
      'driver' => 'database', // or 'cache', 'redis'
  ],
  

• Event Listeners Extend group logic via events:

  // Example: Revoke permissions on group removal
  public function handle(GroupRemoved $event)
  {
      // Custom logic
  }
  

• Custom Permission Logic Override PermissionChecker:

  $groupSecurity->setPermissionChecker(new CustomPermissionChecker());