Template Class

Calling the Template Class
Parameters
Information Within Tag Pairs
Variable Types
Parsing Variables
Single and Pair Variables (Legacy)
Conditional Tags
Method and Property Reference

If you are not familiar with the ExpressionEngine template language, you may wish to read the Template Overview.

When you create a Plugin or Module, the name of your add-on and any of its public methods become available as ExpressionEngine tags for use in templates:

{exp:addon:method} some template data {/exp:addon:method}

When one of these tags is encountered, the associated method will be called and has a chance to transform this part of the template.

Calling the Template Class

class TMPL

When the Template class calls a module, the Template class makes available to the module class the parameters, variables, and content of the tag currently being processed. To make these values available, simply access the TMPL object of the ExpressionEngine super object:

function module_example()
{
    $name = ee()->TMPL->fetch_param('name', '');
}

Parameters

Before calling the method that is being requested by the ExpressionEngine tag, the Template class will parse out any parameters for that tag and insert them into a Template class variable, thus making them easily accessible by the requested method by using this method:

$param = ee()->TMPL->fetch_param('parameter');

TMPL::fetch_param takes an optional second argument, which is the value that will be returned if the parameter was not set in the opening tag. It defaults to FALSE if the second argument is not supplied:

// Default value is 'random'
$order = ee()->TMPL->fetch_param('order', 'random');

// If they don't specify title
if ( ! ee()->TMPL->fetch_param('title'))
{
    ee()->output->fatal_error('The "title" parameter is required.');
}

Note: values of 'y', 'on' and 'yes' will all return 'yes', while 'n', 'off' and 'no' all return 'no'.

Information Within Tag Pairs

ExpressionEngine tags are used primarily to output some form of content so it can be displayed within a template. The formatting for this content is determined by the HTML and variable data contained between the opening and closing tags for the tag being called. We normally call this formatting information between the opening and closing tags the ‘tag data’, and this data can be requested by using the TMPL::$tagdata variable.

Note: Except in rare cases, a module will have both an opening and closing tag. There are exceptions to this rule such as when you might wish to have a tag that simply performs an automated action. An example of this is the {exp:moblog:check} tag.

Module code in template. The tag data is everything from the end of the opening tag to the beginning of the closing tag, basically the HTML and tag variables:

{exp:magic:spell}

  <h2>{title}</h2>

  <p>{summary}</p>

{/exp:magic:spell}

A module calling and using the tag data. :

$query = ee()->db->query($sql);
$variables = array();

foreach($query->result as $row)
{
    $variables[] = array(
      'foo' => $row['foo'],
      'bar' => $row['bar']
      );
}

return ee()->TMPL->parse_variables(ee()->TMPL->tagdata, $variables);

Variable Types

ExpressionEngine variables are simply a word or underscored phrase with curly brackets on either side. The names are usually quite simple and contextually understandable for the tag, thus making it easier for users to remember them and understand their usage. There are three kinds of variables in ExpressionEngine, single and pair.

// Single Variable
{summary}

// Pair Variable
{category}

{/category}

Parsing Variables

Overview

The Template class makes parsing your module or plugin’s variables a snap. Using the TMPL::parse_variables method, you supply the tag data, and an array containing all of your variables, organized as “rows”. Your single, pair, and conditional tags will automatically be parsed for you, and your module or plugin will also automatically have {count} and {switch} variables. Additionally, date variables will be parsed, and you can optionally have typography performed automatically for you as well.

Master Variables Array

First let’s look at a typical variables array:

Looking at this example, we see two “rows” of results. Each “row” contains a pair variable, 'powers', which itself has multiple rows with some single variables, 'power' and 'scale'. Next we have the single variables 'name', 'dob', 'type', 'affiliation', and 'bio'. We can tell by looking that 'dob' is a date field, in this case date of birth. The 'bio' field, though a single variable is also an array, containing the contents and typography formatting instructions, but more on that later. Let’s look at a typical way that this array would have been created in an add-on’s code.

$variables = array();

foreach ($query->result as $row)
{
    $powers = array()

    foreach ($unserialize($row['powers']) as $power)
    {
        $powers[] = array('power' => $power['name'], 'scale' => $power['scale']);
    }

    $variable_row = array(
        'powers'  => $powers,
        'name'    => $row['name'],
        'dob'   => $row['dob'],
        'type'    => $row['type'],
        'affiliation' => $row['affiliation']
    );

    $type_prefs = array('text_format' => 'xhtml', 'html_format' => 'all');

    $variable_row['bio'] = array($row['bio'], $type_prefs);

    $variables[] = $variable_row;
}

In the example above, first the pair variable $powers array is created. Each “row” of the pair variable is an array of single variables, or even more pair variables. Then an array is used to hold the data for this result’s row. The simple single variables are added in a simple array() declaration, but bio, which needed some typography preferences, is added later as an additional key. Whether you use an array() declaration, or keys for assignment is entirely up to you, and will often depend on the needs of your code. At the end of the loop, we add the entire “row” of data to our master $variables array. That row is now stored for parsing.

Note that the order in which the variables are given in the array is the same order they will be parsed in. Because of this precedence, it is often best to place your pair variable arrays first.

Parsing the Variables

Now that our master array is fully loaded, we simply send it along with the tagdata to the TMPL::parse_variables method of the Template class, which returns the parsed output.

$output = ee()->TMPL->parse_variables(ee()->TMPL->tagdata, $variables);

Assuming that our tagdata is as follows:

<h1>{name}</h1>
<ul>
  <li>Date of Birth: {dob format="%d %M, %Y"}</li>
  <li>{type}</li>
  <li>Affiliation: {affiliation}</li>
</ul>

<ul>
{powers}
  <li{if scale > 5} class="great"{/if}>{power} ({scale})</li>
{/powers}
</ul>

{bio}

Our returned output would be:

<h1>Chameleon</h1>
<ul>
  <li>Date of Birth: 02 May, 1974</li>
  <li>Hero</li>
  <li>Affiliation: Litigation Coalition</li>
</ul>

<ul>
  <li class="great">Super Strength (8)</li>
  <li>Invisibility (4)</li>
</ul>

<p>Hailing from the planet Lizzon, Chameleon came to earth in 2003.
</p>

<h1>Stinkor</h1>
<ul>
  <li>Date of Birth: 18 Feb, 1968</li>
  <li>Villain</li>
  <li>Affiliation: N.E.S.T.</li>
</ul>

<ul>
  <li>Poisonous Breath (5)</li>
  <li class="great">Wealth (7)</li>
</ul>

<p>As a child, Stinkor was teased for his bad breath.  When he realized that it was more than bad…noxious even, he turned to a life of crime, robbing banks by knocking out the guards by saying "Hello" in their face.
</p>

The following subsections break down the procedures in detail.

Single Variables

<h1>{name}</h1>
<ul>
  <li>Date of Birth: {dob format="%d %M, %Y"}</li>
  <li>{type}</li>
  <li>Affiliation: {affiliation}</li>
</ul>

Single variables are defined in the array as simple key => value pairs.

$vars = array(
    'name' => 'Stinkor',
    'type' => 'Villain',
    'dob' => -58924800,
    'affiliation' => 'N.E.S.T.'
    );

Additionally, you can have Typography automatically performed on single variables, by sending the variable in the form of an array with two keys

the first being the content, and the second being an array including any of the four available standard Typography preferences that you wish to override. Sending an empty array will result in Typography being parsed with the class defaults.
$type_prefs = array( ‘text_format’ => ‘markdown’, ‘html_format’ => ‘all’, ‘auto_links’ => ‘y’, ‘allow_img_url’ => ‘y’ );
$vars[‘bio’] = array(‘This is the variable contents’, $type_prefs);

Pair Variables

<ul>
{powers}
  <li>{power} ({scale})</li>
{/powers}
</ul>

Pair variables are defined identically to single variables, but contained in a multidimensional array of “rows” with the pair variable’s name as the key.

$vars['powers'] = array(
      array('power' => 'Poisonous Breath', 'scale' => 5),
      array('power' => 'Wealth', 'scale' => 7),
      array('power' => 'Flying', 'scale' => 6)
      );

Pair variables can automatically make use of backspace and limit parameters in their template tags.

Automatic Variables

If you are using the TMPL::parse_variables method to handle variable parsing in your add-on, then your tag will automatically inherit the ability to use the following variables:

{count}

The “count” of the output; the iteration of the tag pair loop.

{total_results}

The total number of results, or “rows”, that your tag will output.

{switch="one|two|three"}

This variable permits you to rotate through any number of values as the results are displayed. The first result will use “one”, the second will use “two”, the third “three”, the fourth “one”, and so on.

Date Variables

When the Template Parser encounters a variable that looks like a date variable (format or timezone parameter, relative modifier), it will parse the variable using all of the parsing options available to you for date variables, so it is important to send date variables as UTC/GMT Unix timestamps. Localization will automatically occur according to the site and logged in user’s preferences.

$var['dob'] = 58924800;  // Nov 14, 1971 (UTC/GMT)

Path Variables

Path variables are used to create URLS and may require a unique indicator be appended to the final url.

{id_path="template_group/template"}

You indicate a path variable in much the same way you pass typography information, by sending the variable in the form of an array with two keys. The first key is the value you want appended to the final url. The second key must be named ‘path_variable’ and set to TRUE.

$var['id_path'] = array('/25', array('path_variable' => TRUE));

Conditionals

Your variables will automatically be made available to conditionals. No special processing is necessary in your add-on to handle conditionals for variables you send to the parser. However, please be aware that in the ExpressionEngine template language, the string “0” is not considered falsy.

Parsing Full Results

Once you have assembled your master array of result “rows”, with each row containing the single and pair variables that your tag uses, simply call the TMPL::parse_variables method, providing the tag data, and the master array.

$str = ee()->TMPL->parse_variables($tagdata, $variables);

Parsing a Single Result Row

You may also parse the result rows yourself, which could be useful if for some reason you need to modify the TMPL::$tagdata for each row based on certain criteria. You can still benefit from the simplified variable parsing by using TMPL::parse_variables_row, though you will no longer automatically have {count}, {total_results}, or {switch=} variables. To include these variables when parsing your own result rows, you will need to add them yourself.

$count = 0;
$output = '';

foreach($query->result as $row)
{
  $row['count'] = ++$count;
  $row['total_results'] = $query->num_rows;

  $chunk = ee()->TMPL->parse_variables_row($tagdata, $row);
  $chunk = ee()->TMPL->parse_switch($chunk, $count - 1);

  $output .= $chunk;

Single and Pair Variables (Legacy)

Before calling the module for the ExpressionEngine tag, the Template class parses out all of the variables contain in the tag’s data and puts them into arrays which are Template class variables. This allows the module to have a list of all the single, pair, and conditional tags that it needs to replace with content.

Single variables output a single piece of content, and in the module’s code these variables are usually handled by doing a simple find and replace, where the outputted content is replacing the variable. The Template class array for single variables is TMPL::$var_single, where the keys are the variable’s name and the values are the full variable contents including any formatting parameters. For dates using format="%Y %m %d", only the formatting string is assigned to the array value. The Template class also provides a method, TMPL::swap_var_single, for performing the find and replace, making sure that the variable is replaced correctly in the template.

foreach (ee()->TMPL->var_single as $key => $val)
{
    if ($key == "spell_name")
    {
        $tagdata = ee()->TMPL->swap_var_single($val, $row['spell_name'], $tagdata);
    }

    if (strncmp($key, "spell_date", 10) == 0)
    {
        $date = ee()->localize->format_date($val, $row['spell_date']);

        $tagdata = ee()->TMPL->swap_var_single($key, $date, $tagdata);
    }
}

Pair variables are a bit more complicated since they are often used for performing a loop within the tag data when there are multiple pieces of content of a similar type. A good example of this is the channel module where an entry might have multiple categories.

{exp:channel:entries}

<ul>
{categories}
<li>{category_name}</li>
{/categories}
</ul>

{exp:channel:entries}

The Template class variable containing the variable pairs in the tag data is TMPL::$var_pair, which is an array where the keys are the contents of the pair variable’s opening tag and the values are an array containing any parameters for the pair variable. Since the TMPL::$var_pair variable does not contain the content of the variable pair, you will have to search the template for it yourself using a preg_match() (or possibly a preg_match_all(), if you believe there could be multiple instances of this variable pair).

foreach (ee()->TMPL->var_pair as $key => $val)
{
  if (strncmp($key, 'items', 5) == 0)
    {
      $temp = preg_match("/".LD.$key.RD."(.*?)".LD.'\'.SLASH.'items'.RD."/s", ee()->TMPL->tagdata, $matches)

        // Set the display preference
        $nest = (is_array($val) && isset($val['nest'])) ? $val['nest'] : 'no';

        if ($nest == 'yes')
        {
          $temp = $this->nested_items($this->items, $temp);
        }
        else
        {
          $temp = $this->linear_items($this->items, $temp);
        }
    }
}

Conditional Tags

Conditional tags allow scripting to be added to your module’s tag data in order to show data if certain defined criteria are met. The structure should be a variable being checked against another variable or value via an operator:

// Structure
{if variable comparison-operator value}

Data between the tags that gets shown if the condition is met.

{/if}

// Example
{if spell_level > 3}

Advance Magicians Only

{/if}

There is a great deal more information about possible conditionals in the Conditional Tags, so we suggest you give it a quick look over.

If you are scripting conditional tags in your module, then they should be done first when processing tag data before any other variables are parsed. Instead of writing your own conditional parsing routine, ExpressionEngine allows you to simply give your data to a method that then takes care of all the work. The data needs to be in the form of an array where the key is the name of the variable and the value is the data for that variable.

If you have short conditionals that can be evaluated without a comparison operator (ex: {if allow_comments}), then instead of sending data you will send a string of either 'TRUE' or 'FALSE' depending on whether that conditional should be evaluated as true or false. The example belows gives you an idea of how this should work:

$cond       = $row;   // $row contains query fields and values, ex:  'title' => "First Entry"

$cond['logged_in']    = (ee()->session->userdata('member_id') == 0) ? 'FALSE' : 'TRUE';
$cond['logged_out']   = (ee()->session->userdata('member_id') != 0) ? 'FALSE' : 'TRUE';
$cond['allow_comments']   = (isset($row['allow_comments']) AND $row['allow_comments'] == 'n') ? 'FALSE' : 'TRUE';

$tagdata = ee()->functions->prep_conditionals($tagdata, $cond);

Once you send your tag data and your array of conditional tags, the Functions::prep_conditionals method processes the conditionals so that they can be evaluated by the Template parser.

Method and Property Reference

$tagdata
$var_single
$var_pair
fetch_param($which[, $default = FALSE])
parse_variables($tagdata, $variables[, $enable_backspace = TRUE])
parse_variables_row($tagdata, $variables[, $solo = TRUE])
log_item($str, $details = FALSE)
parse_globals($str)
show_404()
fetch_template($template_group, $template, $show_default = true, $site_id = '')
fetch_and_parse($template_group = '', $template = '', $is_embed = false, $site_id = '', $is_layout = false)
no_results()
remove_ee_comments($str)
sync_from_files()

`$tagdata`

String containing the data within the tag you’re currently parsing.

`$var_single`

Array containing single variables within TMPL::$tagdata.

`$var_pair`

Array containing variable pairs within TMPL::$tagdata.

`fetch_param($which[, $default = FALSE])`

Parameter	Type	Description
$which	`String`	Name of the parameter
$default	`Mixed`	Default value for parameter
Returns	`String`	Value of the parameter or the default

Fetch the parameter of a template tag.

`parse_variables($tagdata, $variables[, $enable_backspace = TRUE])`

Parameter	Type	Description
$tagdata	`String`	Tagdata or text to be parsed
$variables	`Array`	Array of variables and their data (see Master Variables Array for an example)
$enable_backspace	`Boolean`	Optionally disable the `backspace` tag parameter
Returns	`String`	The `$tagdata` parsed with `$variables`

Parse the variables within in a string–usually TMPL::$tagdata.

`parse_variables_row($tagdata, $variables[, $solo = TRUE])`

Parameter	Type	Description
$tagdata	`String`	Tagdata or text to be parsed
$variables	`Array`	Array of variables for a single row of data
$solo	`Boolean`	Should be set to `TRUE` if not being called from `TMPL::parse_variables`–forces some caching
Returns	`String`	The `$tagdata` parsed with `$variables`

Parses a single row of data instead of letting TMPL::parse_variables handle all of the rows for you.

`log_item($str, $details = FALSE)`

Write message to template log in Output Profiler.

Parameter	Type	Description
$str	`String`	Log message
$details	`String`	More detailed log message, initially hidden behind “read more”

`parse_globals($str)`

Parameter	Type	Description
$str	`String`	Parsed template

Parses global variables like the currently logged in member’s information, system variables, paths, action IDs, CAPTCHAs. Typically stuff that should only be done after caching to prevent any manner of changes in the system or who is viewing the page to affect the display.

This function would also strip ExpressionEngine comments from the code. It is being run automatically on each front-end page request, however if you are using TMPL library for other types of requests, you might need to call it manually.

`show_404()`

Show a 404 page whether one is set in the config or not

`fetch_template($template_group, $template, $show_default = true, $site_id = '')`

Parameter	Type	Description
$template_group	`String`	Template group name
$template	`String`	Template name
$show_default	`Bool`	If `true`, show template from default group in site
$site_id	`Int`	Site ID

Fetch Template Data

Takes a Template Group, Template, and Site ID and will retrieve the Template and its metadata from the database (or file)

`fetch_and_parse($template_group = '', $template = '', $is_embed = false, $site_id = '', $is_layout = false)`

Parameter	Type	Description
$template_group	`String`	Template group name
$template	`String`	Template name
$is_embed	`Bool`	Whether processed template is an embedded template
$site_id	`Int`	Site ID
$is_layout	`Bool`	Whether processed template is a layout template

Fetch and Process Template

Determines what template to process, fetches the template and its preferences, and then processes all of it

`no_results()`

Return template chunk contained inside {if no_results}...{/if}

If a tag/class has no results to show, it can call this method. Any `no_results`` variable in the tag will be followed. May be 404 page, content, or even a redirect.

`remove_ee_comments($str)`

Parameter	Type	Description
$str	`String`	Parsed template

Remove all EE Code Comment Strings

EE Templates have a special EE Code Comments for site designer notes and are removed during Template processing.

`sync_from_files()`

Synchronize templates between database and files

Getting Started

The Fundamentals

Advanced Usage

Best Practices

Community