In PHP, if you return a reference to a protected/private property to a class outside the scope of the property does the reference override the scope?
e.g.
class foo
{
protected bar = array();
getBar()
{
return &bar;
}
}
class foo2
{
blip = new foo().getBar(); // i know this isn't php
}
Is this correct and is the array bar being passed by reference?
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Answer
Well, your sample code is not PHP, but yes, if you return a reference to a protected variable, you can use that reference to modify the data outside of the class’s scope. Here’s an example:
<?php
class foo {
protected $bar;
public function __construct()
{
$this->bar = array();
}
public function &getBar()
{
return $this->bar;
}
}
class foo2 {
var $barReference;
var $fooInstance;
public function __construct()
{
$this->fooInstance = new foo();
$this->barReference = &$this->fooInstance->getBar();
}
}
$testObj = new foo2();
$testObj->barReference[] = 'apple';
$testObj->barReference[] = 'peanut';
?>
<h1>Reference</h1>
<pre><?php print_r($testObj->barReference) ?></pre>
<h1>Object</h1>
<pre><?php print_r($testObj->fooInstance) ?></pre>
When this code is executed, the print_r() results will show that the data stored in $testObj->fooInstance has been modified using the reference stored in $testObj->barReference. However, the catch is that the function must be defined as returning by reference, AND the call must also request a reference. You need them both! Here’s the relevant page out of the PHP manual on that: