Using Symfony2 as a REST API

1. Symfony2 As A REST-API

2. Who Am I ?
● Kifah Abbad:
○ Web Enthusiast since 1993
○ Web Developer since 1998
○ Participant in Berlin Symfony Live Conf.
○ Active in Symfony2 User Group.

3. Who Am I ?
● Kifah Abbad:
○ Travel Addict
○ Loving Father

4. Working@Devbliss: devbliss.de
● State Of The Art Web Development
● Berlin, Germany
● We are hiring.

5. Who is this for ?
● Symfony2 beginner/Intermediate: Controllers, DI-
Container, bundles...etc.
● “Scratching the surface”

6. Problem/Scenario
New Job
First Task

7. ● Shop for Toy Guns
● You are a “backend developer”
Problem/Scenario

8. ● More Javascript, Front End
Developers on team.
● Functionality
● Code readability
● extendability,
● standarized solutions.
Problem/Scenario

9. Boss: We need a REST-API. It is cool

10. Why API?
● Clear separation of responsibilities
(View/Controller…etc)
● packaging services, selling services

11. Why REST-API?
● HTTP-Verbs -> CRUD representation
● Clean more readable representation
GET /guns/23
DELETE /guns/23
…………

12. Why REST-API?
● Easy to be called from Javascript
● Preferably reads and responds in JSON-Format
○ Javascript object
○ easy to read for humans
○ easy to parse for machines

13. No Problem, Mr. Norris

14. Project Setup
Front-End (Javascript, HTML5...etc)
Web Server
Symfony2 -> PHP Backend

15. Why Symfony2?
● Component based: Twig, HTTP-Kernel...etc
● Huge Community
● Coupled with other successful projects: Drupal,
phpBB, Laravel.
● First Major Frameworks to use PHP 5.3 + Features,
innovative ideas like bundles, annotations...etc
● Out of the box integration of Doctrine2

16. Session Management with REST?

17. No Problem, Sweetheart

18. Project Setup
Symfony2 -> PHP Backend
Front-End (Javascript, HTML5...etc)
Web Server
Authentication, Session storage and
management into memcached

21. Symfony2 Backend Setup
Controller
Service/Repository
Entities (Doctrine)
● Slim-Controllers → extract
business logic into
services, factories, repos
● Interfaces as contracts
● Abstract Controller for
repetitive methods and
functionalities
● Goodies: DI-Container,
Annotations

22. Doctrine Entities
User
Order
ToyGun
● A user can have many
orders
● And order can consist of
many ToyGuns (types)
● a ToyGun type can be part
of many orders.
OneToMany
ManyToMany

24. GET /users
Custom Annotation

25. @JSONResponse
● Own custom annotation
● configure to own needs, for example
parameter response-code...etc

26. GET /users/23
Param Converter

27. @ParamConverter
● Symfony’s Extra Bundle
● Convert $ID → Entity Object
● $this->getDoctrine->getRepository(..)->find

28. POST /users
payload ={
"userName":"SonofChuck",
"email":gunboy@mail.com,
"age":"19"
}
Custom Annotation

29. @PayloadToEntity
● Own custom annotation
● configure to own needs,
○ for example on how to deserialize and convert
payload to object

30. What Else is out there?
FOSRestBundle

31. FOSRestBundle
● Automatic Route Generation
● Its own format generation json/xml
● Truck load of features, configuration
options...

32. What Else is out there?
NelmioApiDocBundle

33. NelmioApiDocBundle

34. What Else is out there?
BazingaRestExtraBundle

35. What Else is out there?
DataTransformationBundle

36. What Else is out there?
GuzzleBundle

37. What Else is out there?
JMSSerializeBundle

39. Thanks for your attention
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@devbliss
kifah.abbad@devbliss.com