Object Reflector Laravel Package

Getting Started

Install the package as a dev dependency to avoid runtime overhead:

composer require --dev sebastian/object-reflector

Begin by inspecting private/protected properties in tests or debugging sessions. The API is minimal and self-explanatory:

use SebastianBergmann\ObjectReflector\ObjectReflector;

$reflector = new ObjectReflector();
$properties = $reflector->getProperties($someObject);

// Output all properties and their values
foreach ($properties as $name => $value) {
    echo "$name = " . print_r($value, true) . PHP_EOL;
}

This is your go-to when Laravel’s dump(), dd(), or even Illuminate\Support\Debug\Dumper can’t peek inside private properties — especially in legacy code or deeply nested service objects.

Implementation Patterns

• Testing Internal State Safely: Replace brittle @access annotations or reflection boilerplate in PHPUnit tests. For example, assert internal state of a repository or domain service without violating encapsulation:

  $order = new Order($items);
  $reflector = new ObjectReflector();
  $this->assertSame(OrderStatus::CONFIRMED, $reflector->getProperties($order)['status']);
  

• Enhanced __toString() for Logging: Implement clean debug output in domain models:

  public function __toString(): string
  {
      $reflector = new ObjectReflector();
      $props = $reflector->getProperties($this);
      return get_class($this) . '(' . implode(', ', array_map(
          fn($k, $v) => "$k=" . (is_object($v) ? get_class($v) : $v),
          array_keys($props), $props
      )) . ')';
  }
  

• Custom Dump Helper: Wrap in a helper to make it reusable across test suites:

  function dump_private(object $object): void
  {
      $props = (new ObjectReflector)->getProperties($object);
      dump($props);
  }
  

  Then call dump_private($user) to see all inherited properties — even private ones from UserTrait or parent classes.
• Inspecting Eloquent Relationships: For edge cases where relationships leak internal state (e.g., lazy-load state, relations not yet initialized), verify hydration behavior without adding public getters.

Gotchas and Tips

• PHP Version Alignment is Critical: This package uses strict version support (e.g., v6+ drops PHP 8.3, v5+ drops 8.2). Always run composer show sebastian/object-reflector and compare to php -v. Out-of-sync versions cause silent failures or BC breaks in tests.
• Naming Collisions Handling: Properties from parent classes appear as ParentClass::property. This avoids ambiguity but breaks naive string matching — e.g., User::id vs Model::id. Use explode('::', $key) to extract class and property parts.
• Read-Only Properties Are Supported but Immutable: Works on PHP 8.1+ readonly properties, but cannot modify them. Don’t attempt to use ReflectionProperty::setValue() — this package only reads.
• Avoid Production Use: Reflection has measurable overhead. Enable only in APP_ENV=testing or APP_DEBUG=true. Add a guard:

  if (app()->environment('local', 'testing')) {
      // Use ObjectReflector
  }
  

• Inheritance Traversal: getProperties() returns all properties across the entire chain — including private ones hidden in deeply nested traits or abstract parents. This is powerful for debugging but may surprise if you expect only declared properties.
• Final Class, No Extension Points: The core class is final, so no subclassing. Build your own abstraction (e.g., App\Support\PropertyInspector) to insulate app code from direct dependency use.
• Type Safety Warning: Values are returned as-is — if a property holds a closure or resource, print_r() may fail or expose sensitive data. Sanitize before logging.