10 Random Laravel Snippets & Methods, Part 3

This is the next iteration to the Laravel Snippets Series.

Here are 10 more Laravel snippets/methods I use or have recently saved for later:

#1. Get an Eloquent value

1// Instead of
2Model::where('name', 'foo')->first()->active;
3 
4// Do
5Model::where('name', 'foo')->value('active');
6 
7// Exception if no records found
8Model::where('name', 'foo')->valueOrFail('active');

#2. String Masking

1Str::mask('[email protected]', '*', 3);
2// my******************
3 
4Str::mask('+56 9 87654321', '*', -8, 6);
5// + 56 9 ******21

#3. Js::from()

Sometimes you may pass an array to your view with the intention of rendering it as JSON in order to initialize a JavaScript variable.

Instead of this:

1<script>
2    var app = <?php echo json_encode($array); ?>;
3</script>

You can do this:

1<script>
2    var app = {{ Js::from($array) }};
3</script>

#4. @js

Building on #3, if you need to render in blade you can use the @js directive.

1<div x-data="@js($data)"></div>

Will render:

1<div x-data="<?php echo \Illuminate\Support\Js::from($data)->toHtml() ?>"></div>

#5. Checking for debug mode

1if (App::hasDebugModeEnabled()) {
2    // ...
3}

#6. Filter Non-null Array Values

1Arr::whereNotNull([null, 0, false, '', null, []]);
2// returns [0, false, '', []]

#7. Invisible Modifier for MySQL Columns

Oliver Matla contributed invisible modifier support, introduced in MySQL v8.0.23. When columns are marked as invisible, they are not implicitly (i.e., SELECT *) and thus not hydrated in Laravel models. These columns can still be explicitly selected, making it useful to omit unless you explicitly need the data:

1Schema::table('users', function (Blueprint $table) {
2    $table->string('secret')->nullable()->invisible();
3});

This feature is currently only available for MySQL.

#8. DateTime Parsing Added to the Request Instance

1// Before
2if ($date = $request->input('when')) {
3    $date = Carbon::parse($datetime);
4}
5 
6// After
7$date = $request->date('when');

#9. Define Extra Default Password Validation Rules

Ash Allen contributed the ability to define custom validation rules that will run as part of default password rules using the rules() method:

1Password::defaults(function () {
2    return Password::min(8)
3        ->symbols()
4        ->mixedCase()
5        ->uncompromised()
6        ->rules(new ZxcvbnRule());
7});

#10. HTML String Method

1// Before
2new HtmlString(Str::of($content)->markdown());
3 
4// After
5Str::of($content)
6    ->markdown()
7    ->html();