So, yesterday, I spent a few hours trying to create a robust command-line interface for one of my CodeIgniter applications.  I learned a lot about PHP-CLI.  I also came to remember why it’s a bad idea to try and fit a round peg in a square hole.

The thing is, CodeIgniter is a great little web framework.  See the key word in that sentence?  Yes, you can hack some CLI functionality in, but if you want to start doing fancy stuff like adding multiple levels of interactive menus and such, then its time to rethink what you’re doing.

On the other hand, there are many reasons to create a simple CLI-interface to your web application.  The main use would be for running of maintenance tasks and automated CRON scripts.  For this kind of task, it’s very easy to create a CLI entry-point for your app.

How to Do It.

I started off by grabbing some advice from NetTuts and downloading Phil Sturgeon’s excellent CLI library.

In the same folder as the main index.php file, I created another file named entry.php to serve as my CLI entry to the application.  That file looks like:

Notice that I am accepting command-line arguments.  The above code will halt execution and exit if any unknown command-line arguments are given.  It assumes the first non-switch command line argument is the action the user wants to run.  It automatically prepends the “utils” controller to the route, thereby sandboxing CLI access to a single controller. The controller can do whatever you want. Here’s a small example wherein I present a main menu if no route was specified when the user runs the CLI interface:

Notice the main menu!  The design goal for the Controller was for the main menu index method to be interactive, but every other method to be able to run unattended if parameters are sent, otherwise to display prompts.

I also made some heavy modifications and additions to the CLI.php library, adding the ability to run any form_validation validation function against command-line inputs (w00t), adding the ability to display view files easily, and adding a few other helper method here and there.

The code is too long to display in this post, but here’s a link to the file source on Bitbucket.

Wrap-Up

It’s definitely not a good idea to attempt a full, robust, multi-level CLI interface for your CodeIgniter application, but this framework will help you setup a simple, even slightly-interactive CLI interface to make running maintenance tasks and providing basic tools easier for your CLI users.

The repository with all of the code is available on my Bitbucket page.

Well, I’m back.

It’s been exactly two years, six months, 1 day, and 12 minutes since I last published a post on my website.  You could say that I took a vacation from blogging got a real job, so coming back to the activity of blogging feels like running into an old friend that I’ve hardly talked to in years.  Do you feel the tension?!  Recently, my sister asked me to dig up some old blog posts, and you know what?  Reading my old posts, I remembered just how much fun it is to write.

The problem is that my writing skills have grown rusty, since I have spent the past eight years in a “business” environment writing:

• mostly bullet
• statements directed
• at managers and deans
• who “don’t have time” to
• appreciate literary wit…

…so I’ve been trolling the Internet looking for good tips for blogging.  Here’s a smattering of what I’ve found:

1. Offer the Reader Something

So, I can tell you right now that this post will offer you absolutely no rewarding value.  There it is.  In fact, I wrote it just in order to have something besides the WordPress default post to start off with.  So, now that we have gotten that out of the way, the next tip I found was:

2. Include Bulleted Point Lists

Done!  See my bulleted list above.  Actually, I’m a pro at this.  One thing I’ve learned over the past few years is that nobody in my department has an inclination for reading.  Especially not emails.  Especially not from me.  So, I’ve learned to avoid complete thoughts, because writing bullets is just way more effective.  But anyhow, I also read that you should…

3. Make Headlines Snappy

What could be better than “Hello World!”  And, I’ve included a nice “hello”-themed picture to go along with it.

4. Write with Passion

You can’t see me right now, but believe me, I am writing with much passion and vigor.  The reason for this is that I have had at least eight cups of coffee in the past three hours.  My right eye is pulsating like crazy and my hands are like paint shakers.  But, as Paul Erdős has taught us, without amphetamines, there can be no creativity.

5. Publish Often

Well, if you consider every two years to be “often”, strictly speaking, then I am good.

Seriously, I do plan to put a lot of useful stuff here.  The problem most people have with blogging is thinking up good content to share.  Some people spend weeks tinkering with their blog’s design and playing with plugins but then forget to, y’know, write something.  I, on the other hand, have a laundry-list of topics queued up to be posted here.  So, now that we’ve cut the tension and gotten introductions out of the way, I look forward to reacquainting myself with my blog.

It’s been a long time, old friend.