Check if request input is not null before set the value

Question

I have an API that set user settings. Because neither of inputs are mandatory I want to check first if the value exists and then set it to the model attributes in order to avoid null values.

$this->InputValidator->validate($request, [
                'firsname' => 'string',
                'lastname' => 'string',
                'email' => 'email',
                'mobile_phone' => 'string',
                'address' => 'string',
                'language' => 'string',
                'timezone' => 'string',
                'nationality' => 'string',
                'profile_photo' => 'url'
            ]);

            $userInformation = new UserInformation([
                'firstname' => $request->input('firstname'),
                'lastname' => $request->input('lastname'),
                'email' => $request->input('email'),
                'mobile_phone' => $request->input('mobile_phone'),
                'address' => $request->input('address'),
                'profile_photo' => $request->input('profile_photo')
            ]);
            $User->information()->save($userInformation);

Specificaly when one of inputs is not existin I dont want to pass it to the model. Also I dont want to make inputs required

Ento

Answer 1

This answer to this question taken from here :

if($request->filled('user_id'))

Westerly

Answer 2

do this

$userInformation = new UserInformation;

if(request->has('firstname')){
   $userInformation->firstname = $request->firstname;
}
if(request->has('lastnme')){
   $userInformation->lastname = $request->lastname;
}

 // do it for all

 $User->information()->save($userInformation);

Edit: Or use Form requests, it's a better approach

Resuscitate

I have just tested and request->has('firstname') will return true even if firstname is null. Maybe it is laravel version thing, im using 5.8 – Paine

i'm not sure too but you can create a middleware that unsets null values in requests or you can just add request->get('firstname') != null , whatever suits you – Resuscitate

Answer 3

Check each value and push it first into array. Then assign array.

<?php
$userArray=array();
if($request->input('firstname') != "") $userArray['firstname']=$request->input('firstname');

if($request->input('lastname') != "") $userArray['lastname']=$request->input('lastname');
if($request->input('email') != "") $userArray['email']=$request->input('email');
if($request->input('mobile_phone') != "") $userArray['mobile_phone']=$request->input('mobile_phone');
if($request->input('address') != "") $userArray['address']=$request->input('address');
if($request->input('profile_photo') != "") $userArray['profile_photo']=$request->input('profile_photo');

$userInformation = new UserInformation($userArray);
?>

Unprejudiced

better use $request->has('input') , it works on empty strings and null values (in laravel 5.4 empty strings are converted to null in request so this won't work) – Resuscitate

Answer 4

$request->validate([
  'name'=>['required'],
])

And

if(!is_null($request->name)){}

Cannell

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