PHPUnit - creating Mock objects to act as stubs for properties

Question

I'm trying to configure a Mock object in PHPunit to return values for different properties (that are accessed using the __get function)

Example:

class OriginalObject {
 public function __get($name){
switch($name)
 case "ParameterA":
  return "ValueA";
 case "ParameterB":
  return "ValueB";
 }
}

I'm trying to mock this using:

$mockObject = $this->getMock("OrigionalObject");

$mockObject    ->expects($this->once())
    ->method('__get')
    ->with($this->equalTo('ParameterA'))
    ->will($this->returnValue("ValueA"));

$mockObject    ->expects($this->once())
    ->method('__get')
    ->with($this->equalTo('ParameterB'))
    ->will($this->returnValue("ValueB"));

but this fails horribly :-(

Are the typos ("Origional" instead of "Original", missing closing quotes at ValueA and ValueB) in the mock code part of your actual code, or transcription errors? — Phil, Jul 29 '10 at 12:59
LOL thanks Phil (for pointing out my dyslexia) The typos (amended now) are just in the example code - clearly this isn't the actual code being executed — Tim, Jul 30 '10 at 05:56

score 9 · Accepted Answer · edited May 23 '17 at 10:32

9

I haven't tried mocking __get yet, but maybe this will work:

// getMock() is deprecated
// $mockObject = $this->getMock("OrigionalObject");
$mockObject = $this->createMock("OrigionalObject");

$mockObject->expects($this->at(0))
    ->method('__get')
    ->with($this->equalTo('ParameterA'))
    ->will($this->returnValue('ValueA'));

$mockObject->expects($this->at(1))
    ->method('__get')
    ->with($this->equalTo('ParameterB'))
    ->will($this->returnValue('ValueB'));

I've already used $this->at() in a test and it works (but isn't an optimal solution). I got it from this tread:

How can I get PHPUnit MockObjects to return different values based on a parameter?

edited May 23 '17 at 10:32

Community

1
1

answered Jul 29 '10 at 12:55

koen

13,349
10
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hey koen $this->at() works for me - Thank you ;-) Why don't you think that this is an optimal solution? – Tim Jul 30 '10 at 05:58
1

It's not really scalable and the test is difficult to read. A callback may be easier to read if you give it a good name. But in the first place I would look at trying to refactor the __get. – koen Jul 30 '10 at 06:41
also, you are testing state (which some regard as bad practice) and even more, private state (which many regard as a bad practice). Of course there are smart folks who don't see a problem in that and you may be one of them. – koen Jul 30 '10 at 06:44

score 4 · Answer 2 · edited Jul 26 '13 at 21:28

4

This should work:

class Test extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase {
...
    function testSomething() {
         $mockObject = $this->getMock("OrigionalObject");

         $mockObject
              ->expects( $this->any() )
              ->method('__get')
              ->will( $this->returnCallback('myMockGetter'));
         ...
     }
...
}

function myMockGetter( $classPropertyName ) {
    switch( $classPropertyName ) {
        case 'ParameterA':
            return 'ValueA';

        case 'ParameterB':
            return 'ValueB';
    }
}
... ...

edited Jul 26 '13 at 21:28

Community

1
1

answered Jul 28 '11 at 20:29

Johntron

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I think my solution is more optimal than koen, but he makes some important points in his comments. I think one possible solution would be to create a test class, and not use a mock object. This is often used for things like HTTP adapters. – Johntron Sep 02 '11 at 01:56

PHPUnit - creating Mock objects to act as stubs for properties

2 Answers2

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