In the world of PHP development, writing clean, well-documented code is crucial for maintainability and collaboration. One powerful tool that can help you achieve this is PHPDocumentor. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore how to use PHPDocumentor to create professional, standardized documentation for your PHP projects.
What is PHPDocumentor?
PHPDocumentor is an open-source documentation generator for PHP. It analyzes your PHP source code and DocBlock comments to generate comprehensive API documentation in various formats, including HTML, PDF, and XML.
🚀 Fun Fact: PHPDocumentor has been around since 2000 and is one of the oldest documentation tools for PHP!
Installing PHPDocumentor
Before we dive into using PHPDocumentor, let's install it. There are several ways to do this:
Using Composer
The recommended way to install PHPDocumentor is through Composer. Run the following command in your project directory:
composer require --dev phpdocumentor/phpdocumentor
Using PHAR
Alternatively, you can download the PHAR file:
wget https://phpdoc.org/phpDocumentor.phar
chmod +x phpDocumentor.phar
Writing DocBlocks
DocBlocks are specially formatted comments that PHPDocumentor uses to generate documentation. Let's look at how to write them effectively.
Basic Structure
A DocBlock starts with /** and ends with */. Each line within the block typically starts with an asterisk *.
/**
* This is a DocBlock
*/
Documenting Classes
When documenting a class, you should include a brief description and any relevant tags:
/**
* A class representing a user in our system.
*
* This class handles user-related operations such as
* authentication, profile management, etc.
*
* @package MyApp
* @author John Doe <john@example.com>
*/
class User
{
// Class implementation
}
Documenting Methods
For methods, include a description, parameter descriptions, and return type:
/**
* Authenticates a user with the given credentials.
*
* This method checks the provided username and password
* against the database and returns a boolean indicating
* whether the authentication was successful.
*
* @param string $username The user's username
* @param string $password The user's password
* @return bool True if authentication is successful, false otherwise
* @throws AuthenticationException If there's an error during authentication
*/
public function authenticate(string $username, string $password): bool
{
// Method implementation
}
Documenting Properties
For class properties, include a description and type:
class User
{
/**
* The user's unique identifier.
*
* @var int
*/
private $id;
/**
* The user's email address.
*
* @var string
*/
private $email;
}
Advanced DocBlock Tags
PHPDocumentor supports a wide range of tags. Here are some advanced ones:
@deprecated
Use this tag to mark elements that should no longer be used:
/**
* @deprecated since version 2.0, use newMethod() instead
*/
public function oldMethod()
{
// Method implementation
}
@example
Provide usage examples:
/**
* Calculates the area of a circle.
*
* @param float $radius The radius of the circle
* @return float The area of the circle
*
* @example
* $circle = new Circle();
* $area = $circle->calculateArea(5);
* echo $area; // Outputs: 78.539816339745
*/
public function calculateArea(float $radius): float
{
return pi() * pow($radius, 2);
}
@link
Link to external resources:
/**
* @link https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.array-map.php PHP array_map() documentation
*/
public function mapArray(array $input, callable $callback): array
{
return array_map($callback, $input);
}
Generating Documentation
Now that we've written our DocBlocks, let's generate the documentation.
Basic Usage
To generate documentation for your entire project, navigate to your project directory and run:
phpdoc -d ./src -t ./docs
This command tells PHPDocumentor to look for PHP files in the ./src directory and output the documentation to the ./docs directory.
Customizing Output
You can customize the output using a configuration file. Create a file named phpdoc.dist.xml in your project root:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<phpdocumentor
configVersion="3"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xmlns="https://www.phpdoc.org"
xsi:noNamespaceSchemaLocation="https://docs.phpdoc.org/latest/phpdoc.xsd"
>
<paths>
<output>docs</output>
</paths>
<version number="3.0.0">
<api>
<source dsn=".">
<path>src</path>
</source>
</api>
</version>
</phpdocumentor>
This configuration file specifies the input and output directories, as well as the version number of your project.
Best Practices
To make the most of PHPDocumentor, follow these best practices:
- Be Consistent: Use the same style and format throughout your project.
- Be Concise: Provide clear, brief descriptions without unnecessary verbosity.
- Use Type Hinting: In addition to DocBlocks, use PHP's built-in type hinting for parameters and return types.
- Keep It Updated: Always update your documentation when you change your code.
- Use Templates: Create templates for common DocBlocks to ensure consistency.
Real-World Example
Let's put it all together with a real-world example. We'll create a simple Calculator class with documentation:
<?php
namespace CodeLucky\Math;
/**
* A basic calculator class.
*
* This class provides basic arithmetic operations.
*
* @package CodeLucky\Math
* @author CodeLucky Team <team@codelucky.com>
* @version 1.0.0
*/
class Calculator
{
/**
* Adds two numbers.
*
* @param float $a The first number
* @param float $b The second number
* @return float The sum of the two numbers
*
* @example
* $calc = new Calculator();
* echo $calc->add(5, 3); // Outputs: 8
*/
public function add(float $a, float $b): float
{
return $a + $b;
}
/**
* Subtracts one number from another.
*
* @param float $a The number to subtract from
* @param float $b The number to subtract
* @return float The difference between the two numbers
*
* @example
* $calc = new Calculator();
* echo $calc->subtract(10, 4); // Outputs: 6
*/
public function subtract(float $a, float $b): float
{
return $a - $b;
}
/**
* Multiplies two numbers.
*
* @param float $a The first number
* @param float $b The second number
* @return float The product of the two numbers
*
* @example
* $calc = new Calculator();
* echo $calc->multiply(3, 4); // Outputs: 12
*/
public function multiply(float $a, float $b): float
{
return $a * $b;
}
/**
* Divides one number by another.
*
* @param float $a The dividend
* @param float $b The divisor
* @return float The quotient of the division
* @throws \DivisionByZeroError If the divisor is zero
*
* @example
* $calc = new Calculator();
* echo $calc->divide(10, 2); // Outputs: 5
*/
public function divide(float $a, float $b): float
{
if ($b == 0) {
throw new \DivisionByZeroError("Cannot divide by zero");
}
return $a / $b;
}
}
Now, let's generate the documentation for this class:
phpdoc -d ./src -t ./docs
This command will create a beautiful, navigable HTML documentation in the ./docs directory, complete with class descriptions, method details, and examples.
Conclusion
PHPDocumentor is a powerful tool that can significantly improve your PHP development workflow. By writing clear, comprehensive DocBlocks and using PHPDocumentor to generate documentation, you can create more maintainable code and improve collaboration within your team.
Remember, good documentation is an investment in the future of your project. It helps new developers get up to speed quickly, reduces the time spent deciphering old code, and can even help you remember why you made certain decisions months or years down the line.
🌟 Pro Tip: Integrate PHPDocumentor into your continuous integration pipeline to ensure your documentation is always up-to-date with your latest code changes.
By mastering PHPDocumentor, you're not just writing code; you're creating a comprehensive, living document of your PHP project. Happy documenting!
