Using afterFind() to create pseudofields in CakePHP

CakePHP provides a useful model function, afterFind(), which can be used to manipulate results returned from any find(), findAll() or findBy<field>() query.

Tagged with CakePHP and Web Development
Posted on 6/5/07 by Paul Herron

One useful application of this feature is in merging data from two or more database fields into one pseudofield. In the example below, afterFind() is added to a User model. A foreach statement takes the firstName and lastName fields for each user and creates a new field, fullName.

<?php
class User extends AppModel
{
    var $name = 'User';
    
    function afterFind($results) {
        // For any results returned from the 'User' model, take 'firstName' and 'lastName' and use them to produce a 'fullName' pseudofield.
        foreach ($results as $key => $val) {
            if (isset($val['User']['firstName']) && isset($val['User']['lastName'])) {
                $results[$key]['User']['fullName'] = $val['User']['firstName'] . ' ' . $val['User']['lastName'];  
            }
        }
      return $results;
    }
}
?>

CakePHP makes $results available automatically, and automatically deals with them when they're returned from the afterFind(), so this function should work 'as is'.

All being well, a find(), findAll() or findBy() query in the controller will now give an array structure like this:

[User] => Array
    (
    [0] =>
        (
        [firstName] => Graeme
        [lastName] => Garden
        [fullName] => Graeme Garden
        )
        
    [1] =>
        (
        [firstName] => Tim
        [lastName] => Brooke-Taylor
        [fullName] => Tim Brooke-Taylor
        )
    )

afterFind() can result in significantly tidier code, and puts this kind of processing where it belongs - in the model. It's also a useful workaround for inserting more than one field into a generateList() statement. The label parameter in generateList() can only be sourced from one field, but this can be the pseudofield generated in the example above.

$this->set('users', $this->User->generateList(null,null,null,'{n}.User.id','{n}.User.fullName'));

This would set a $users array for use in the view, and could be used be used to output a select box with each option set to a user's full name.

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