To Route or To Action - That is the Question

2023-03-15

The following architecture makes entry points much clearer - single action controllers:

final class ProcessPhpFormController extends Controller
{
    public function __invoke(Request $request)
    {

    }
}

These classes have... eh, exactly 1 action. Like console command has one purpose, and like event subscribers has a purpose. It makes the controller much easier to maintain.

This architecture allows us to refer to the controller route directly in /routes/web.php:

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;

Route::post('/process-php-form', ProcessPhpFormController::class);

We can use IDE to get to the controller class instantly. This feature is available in most PHP frameworks.

Do you remember the named services?

Before we jump into routing, I want to give you some context and set the boundaries. Many years ago, we used to use get element by its reference. Do you want to get the App\Security\SecurityGuard service? Name it in the config and then call:

// in Laravel
$securityGuard = app()->make('security_guard');

// or in Symfony
$securityGuard = $this->get('security_guard');

Then a tiny but powerful feature came in PHP 5.5 - a reference to class by a *::class notation. It might have sparked movement from string references to *::class references - ergo, direct fetch.

Also, if there is just one exact instance of security_guard with an exclusive class of App\Security\SecurityGuard, why not use it directly and explicitly? IDE, PHPStan, and Rector will thank us:

use App\Security\SecurityGuard;

// in Laravel
$securityGuard = app()->make(SecurityGuard::class);

// or in Symfony
$securityGuard = $this->get(SecurityGuard::class);

This is typical today, and we don't think about it anymore - we always use App\Security\SecurityGuard as a reference, in a constructor or during injections.

Context is loaded, so now we get back to routing.

1. to_route()

The routing is an array of urls that point to specific controllers, and an URL is a string that references a specific controller class.

At the top of this post, we defined a controller action that handles submitted forms via POST.

Typical usage is in <form> tag:

<form action="{{ route('...') }}" method="post">

Oh, we forgot something. To use route(), we have to add a route name:

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;

Route::post('/process-php-form', ProcessPhpFormController::class)
    ->name('process_form');

Then we use the string in our template:

<form action="{{ route('process_form') }}" method="post">

After the form is processed, we can redirect it back to the homepage with the following:

final class ProcessPhpFormController extends Controller
{
    public function __invoke(Request $request)
    {
        // process form

        return to_route('homepage');
    }
}

Now we have 2 made up strings: "homepage" and "process_form"... or was it "process-form"?

This approach can lead to typos, but you can avoid that by using constants:

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;

Route::post('/process-php-form', ProcessPhpFormController::class)
    ->name(RouteName::PROCESS_FORM);

Route::post('/', HomepageController::class)
    ->name(RouteName::HOMEPAGE);

That's a lot of code for a single redirect to a single controller. Where are we now?

• We have a typo-proof route name
• We maintain a RouteName references that refer to strings
• We have to constantly make up a new, unique string to avoid conflicts

I've been in this situation for years because of confirmation bias: "I like what I use because I have used it for a long time and I like it."

There is no comparison, A-B testing, or rational thinking. My brain is lazy and comfortable and chooses a known path over anything else.

When we face unknown new way and known comfortable suffering,
we often choose to suffer because we are used to it.

Just a friendly reminder - service name was once in the past a reference to class:

-$securityGuard = app()->make('security_guard');
+$securityGuard = app()->make(\App\Security\SecurityGuard::class);

2. to_action()

A week ago, I noticed a tiny function in one Laravel project - an action() function.

It allows using the controller directly instead of a middleman string:

-<form action="{{ route('process_form') }}" method="post">
+<form action="{{ action(\App\Controllers\ProcessPhpFormController::class) }}" method="post">

The Power of Blade

This is where Blade design becomes super helpful - it's a PHP code, so we can:

• use IDE to jump directly to the controller
• We do not depend on stringy values that have to be maintained in multiple places
• We can use IDE to change class names, and the values will be updated

How about the redirects in the controller?

final class ProcessPhpFormController extends Controller
{
    public function __invoke(Request $request)
    {
        // process form

        return redirect()->action(HomepageController::class);
    }
}

That was easy!

Last but not least, we can drop the whole RouteName and named routes mechanism:

 use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;

+Route::post('/process-php-form', ProcessPhpFormController::class);
-Route::post('/process-php-form', ProcessPhpFormController::class)
-    ->name(RouteName::PROCESS_FORM);

+Route::get('/', HomepageController::class);
-Route::get('/', HomepageController::class)
-    ->name(RouteName::HOMEPAGE);

What benefits do we have now?

By moving from reference to an exact value, we can drop a whole 1/3 of complexity and logic:

• no more strings to maintain or typos
• references are explicit in both templates and the controller
• we can easily read the code without jumping to routes.php - super useful for code reviews or reading an open-source code

Tip: you can create your own or open-sourced to_action() function.

use Illuminate\Http\RedirectResponse;
use Illuminate\Routing\Controller;
use Illuminate\Routing\Redirector;

/**
 * @param class-string<Controller> $action
 * @param array<string, mixed> $parameters
 */
function to_action(string $action, array $parameters = []): RedirectResponse
{
    /** @var Redirector $redirector */
    $redirector = redirect();

    return $redirector->action($action, $parameters);
}

Happy coding!

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