Using the PHP null coalescing assignment operator

Published on 2022-09-09 • Modified on 2022-09-09

This snippet shows how to use the PHP null coalescing assignment operator. One learns every day! I had totally forgotten about this new PHP 7.4 functionality! We all know the classic coalescing operator ?? because it significantly improved our life as of PHP 7.0. As its name indicates, the PHP null coalescing assignment operator allows to use the coalescing operator, and simultaneously assigns the result to a variable. In the following example, we give a value to the bar3 key; this key is not defined as the two random previous keys have a length of eight characters. So the value is set. But, in the last assignment, the value isn't modified as the key already exists. We use array_key_last, and the array contains three values, so it will always return the last key foo we set.

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<?php

declare(strict_types=1);

namespace App\Controller\Snippet;

use Symfony\Component\String\ByteString;

/**
 * I am using a PHP trait to isolate each snippet in a file.
 * This code should be called from a Symfony controller extending AbstractController (as of Symfony 4.2)
 * or Symfony\Bundle\FrameworkBundle\Controller\Controller (Symfony <= 4.1).
 * Services are injected in the main controller constructor.
 */
trait Snippet217Trait
{
    public function snippet217(): void
    {
        $myArray = [];
        $myArray[ByteString::fromRandom(8)->toString()] = 'bar1';
        $myArray[ByteString::fromRandom(8)->toString()] = 'bar2';

        $myArray['foo'] ??= 'bar3';

        var_dump($myArray);

        $myArray[array_key_last($myArray)] ??= 'not modified';

        var_dump($myArray);

        // That's it! 😁
    }
}

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  Work with me!

<?php

declare(strict_types=1);

namespace App\Tests\Integration\Controller\Snippets;

use PHPUnit\Framework\TestCase;
use Symfony\Component\String\ByteString;

/**
 * @see Snippet217Trait
 */
final class Snippet217Test extends TestCase
{
    /**
     * @see Snippet217Trait::snippet217
     */
    public function testSnippet217(): void
    {
        $myArray = [];
        $myArray[ByteString::fromRandom(8)->toString()] = 'bar1';
        $myArray[ByteString::fromRandom(8)->toString()] = 'bar2';
        $myArray['foo'] ??= 'bar3';
        self::assertSame('bar3', $myArray['foo']);

        $myArray[array_key_last($myArray)] ??= 'not modified';
        self::assertSame('bar3', $myArray['foo']);
    }
}

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