Many functions now return NULL instead of FALSE on missing items.
Step 10: Many functions now return NULL instead of FALSE on missing items
Many methods and functions now return NULL instead of FALSE when the required items don’t exist:
o config_item()
o config->item()
o config->slash_item()
o input->get()
o input->post()
o input->get_post()
o input->cookie()
o input->server()
o input->input_stream()
o input->get_request_header()
o session->userdata()
o session->flashdata()
o uri->segment()
o uri->rsegment()
o element()
o elements()
Step 11: Usage of XSS filtering
Many functions in CodeIgniter allow you to use its XSS filtering feature on demand by passing a boolean parameter. The default value of that parameter used to be boolean FALSE, but it is now changed to NULL and it will be dynamically determined by your $config['global_xss_filtering'] value.
If you used to manually pass a boolean value for the $xss_filter parameter or if you’ve always had $config['global_xss_filtering'] set to FALSE, then this change doesn’t concern you.
Otherwise however, please review your usage of the following functions:
o input->get()
o input->post()
o input->get_post()
o input->cookie()
o input->server()
o input->input_stream()
Important: Another related change is that the $_GET, $_POST, $_COOKIE and $_SERVER superglobals are no longer automatically overwritten when global XSS filtering is turned on.
Step 12: Check for potential XSS issues with URIs
The URI Library used to automatically convert a certain set of “programmatic characters” to HTML entities when they are encountered in a URI segment.
This was aimed at providing some automatic XSS protection, in addition to the $config['permitted_uri_chars'] setting, but has proven to be problematic and is now removed in CodeIgniter 3.0.
If your application has relied on this feature, you should update it to filter URI segments through $this->security->xss_clean() whenever you output them.
Step 13: Check for usage of the ‘xss_clean’ Form validation rule
A largely unknown rule about XSS cleaning is that it should only be applied to output, as opposed to input data.
We’ve made that mistake ourselves with our automatic and global XSS cleaning feature (see previous step about XSS above), so now in an effort to discourage that practice, we’re also removing ‘xss_clean’ from the officially supported list of form validation rules.
Because the Form Validation library generally validates input data, the ‘xss_clean’ rule simply doesn’t belong in it.
If you really, really need to apply that rule, you should now also load the Security Helper, which contains xss_clean() as a regular function and therefore can be also used as a validation rule.
Step 14: Update usage of Input Class’s get_post() method
Previously, the Input Class method get_post() was searching first in POST data, then in GETdata. This method has been modified so that it searches in GET then in POST, as its name suggests.
A method has been added, post_get(), which searches in POST then in GET, as get_post() was doing before.
Step 15:Update usage of Directory Helper’s directory_map() function
In the resulting array, directories now end with a trailing directory separator (i.e. a slash, usually).
Step 16: Update usage of Database Forge’s drop_table() method
Up until now, drop_table() added an IF EXISTS clause by default or it didn’t work at all with some drivers. In CodeIgniter 3.0, the IF EXISTS condition is no longer added by default and has an optional second parameter that allows that instead and is set to FALSE by default.
If your application relies on IF EXISTS, you’ll have to change its usage.
// Now produces just DROP TABLE `table_name`
$this->dbforge->drop_table('table_name');
// Produces DROP TABLE IF EXISTS `table_name`
$this->dbforge->drop_table('table_name', TRUE);
Note: The given example uses MySQL-specific syntax, but it should work across all drivers with the exception of ODBC.
Step 17: Change usage of Email library with multiple emails
The Email Library will automatically clear the set parameters after successfully sending emails. To override this behaviour, pass FALSEas the first parameter in the send()method:
if ($this->email->send(FALSE))
{
// Parameters won't be cleared
}
Step 18: Update your Form_validation language lines
Two improvements have been made to the Form Validation Library‘s language files and error messages format:
v Language Library line keys now must be prefixed with form_validation_ in order to avoid collisions:
// Old
$lang['rule'] = ...
// New
$lang['form_validation_rule'] = ...
v The error messages format has been changed to use named parameters, to allow more flexibility than what sprintf() offers:
// Old
'The %s field does not match the %s field.'
// New
'The {field} field does not match the {param} field.'
Note: The old formatting still works, but the non-prefixed line keys are DEPRECATED and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+. Therefore you’re encouraged to update its usage sooner rather than later.
Step 19: Make sure your ‘base_url’ config value is not empty
When $config['base_url'] is not set, CodeIgniter tries to automatically detect what your website’s base URL is. This is done purely for convenience when you are starting development of a new application.
Auto-detection is never reliable and also has security implications, which is why you should always have it manually configured!
One of the changes in CodeIgniter 3.0.3 is how this auto-detection works, and more specifically it now falls back to the server’s IP address instead of the hostname requested by the client. Therefore, if you’ve ever relied on auto-detection, it will change how your website works now.
In case you need to allow e.g. multiple domains, or both http:// and https:// prefixes to be dynamically used depending on the request, remember that application/config/config.php is still a PHP script
$allowed_domains = array('domain1.tld', 'domain2.tld');
$default_domain = 'domain1.tld';
if (in_array($_SERVER['HTTP_HOST'], $allowed_domains, TRUE))
{
$domain = $_SERVER['HTTP_HOST'];
}
else
{
$domain = $default_domain;
}
if ( ! empty($_SERVER['HTTPS']))
{
$config['base_url'] = 'https://'.$domain;
}
else
{
$config['base_url'] = 'http://'.$domain;
}
Step 20:Remove usage of (previously) deprecated functionalities
In addition to the $autoload['core'] configuration setting, there’s a number of other functionalities that have been removed in CodeIgniter 3.0.0:
v The SHA1 library
The previously deprecated SHA1 library has been removed, alter your code to use PHP’s native sha1() function to generate a SHA1 hash.
v The EXT constant
Usage of the EXT constant has been deprecated since dropping support for PHP 4. There’s no longer a need to maintain different filename extensions and in this new CodeIgniter version, the EXT constant has been removed. Use just ‘.php’ instead.
v Smiley helper
The Smiley Helper is a legacy feature from EllisLab’s ExpressionEngine product. However, it is too specific for a general purpose framework like CodeIgniter and as such it is now deprecated.
Also, the previously deprecated js_insert_smiley() (since version 1.7.2) is now removed.
v The Encrypt library
Following numerous vulnerability reports, the Encrypt Library has been deprecated and a new, Encryption Library is added to take its place.
The new library requires either the MCrypt extension (and /dev/urandom availability) or PHP 5.3.3 and the OpenSSL extension. While this might be rather inconvenient, it is a requirement that allows us to have properly implemented cryptographic functions.
v The Cart library
The Cart Library, similarly to the Smiley Helper is too specific for CodeIgniter. It is now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note: The library is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v Database drivers ‘mysql’, ‘sqlite’, ‘mssql’, ‘pdo/dblib’
The mysql driver utilizes the old ‘mysql’ PHP extension, known for its aging code base and many low-level problems. The extension is deprecated as of PHP 5.5 and CodeIgniter deprecates it in version 3.0, switching the default configured MySQL driver to mysqli.
Please use either the ‘mysqli’ or ‘pdo/mysql’ drivers for MySQL. The old ‘mysql’ driver will be removed at some point in the future.
The sqlite, mssql and pdo/dblib (also known as pdo/mssql or pdo/sybase) drivers all depend on PHP extensions that for different reasons no longer exist since PHP 5.3.
Therefore we are now deprecating these drivers as we will have to remove them in one of the next CodeIgniter versions. You should use the more advanced, sqlite3, sqlsrvor pdo/sqlsrv drivers respectively.
Note: These drivers are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to switch to other ones sooner rather than later.
v Security helper do_hash()
Security Helper function do_hash() is now just an alias for PHP’s native hash() function. It is deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note:This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v The $config[‘global_xss_filtering’] setting
As already explained above, XSS filtering should not be done on input data, but on output instead. Therefore, the $config['global_xss_filtering'], which automatically filters input data, is considered a bad practice and is now deprecated.
Instead, you should manually escape any user-provided data via the xss_clean() function when you need to output it, or use a library like HTML Purifier that does that for you.
Note:The setting is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v File helper read_file()
File Helper function read_file() is now just an alias for PHP’s native file_get_contents() function. It is deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note: This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v String helper repeater()
String Helper function repeater() is now just an alias for PHP’s native str_repeat() function. It is deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note:This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v String helper trim_slashes()
String Helper function trim_slashes() is now just an alias for PHP’s native trim() function (with a slash passed as its second argument). It is deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note: This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v Form helper form_prep()
Form Helper function form_prep() is now just an alias for common function html_escape().It is deprecated and will be removed in the future.
Please use html_escape() instead.
Note: This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v Email helper functions
Email Helper only has two functions
Both of them are now aliases for PHP’s native filter_var() and mail() functions, respectively. Therefore the Email Helper altogether is being deprecated and is scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.No
Note: These functions are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove their usage sooner rather than later.
v Date helper standard_date()
Date Helper function standard_date() is being deprecated due to the availability of native PHP constants, which when combined with date() provide the same functionality. Furthermore, they have the exact same names as the ones supported by standard_date(). Here are examples of how to replace its usage:
// Old way
standard_date(); // defaults to standard_date('DATE_RFC822', now());
// Replacement
date(DATE_RFC822, now());
// Old way
standard_date('DATE_ATOM', $time);
// Replacement
date(DATE_ATOM, $time);
Note: This function is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later as it is scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
v HTML helpers nbs(), br()
HTML Helper functions nbs() and br() are just aliases for the native str_repeat() function used with and <br > respectively.
Because there’s no point in just aliasing native PHP functions, they are now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note: These functions are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove their usage sooner rather than later.
v Pagination library ‘anchor_class’ setting
The Pagination Library now supports adding pretty much any HTML attribute to your anchors via the ‘attributes’ configuration setting. This includes passing the ‘class’ attribute and using the separate ‘anchor_class’ setting no longer makes sense. As a result of that, the ‘anchor_class’ setting is now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note:This setting is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v String helper random_string() types ‘unique’ and ‘encrypt’
When using the String Helper function random_string(), you should no longer pass the unique and encrypt randomization types. They are only aliases for md5 and sha1respectively and are now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note:These options are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove their usage sooner rather than later.
v URL helper url_title() separators ‘dash’ and ‘underscore’
When using the URL Helper function url_title(), you should no longer pass dash or underscore as the word separator. This function will now accept any character and you should just pass the chosen character directly, so you should write ‘-‘ instead of ‘dash’ and ‘_’ instead of ‘underscore’.
dash and underscore now act as aliases and are deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note:These options are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove their usage sooner rather than later.
v Session Library method all_userdata()
As seen in the Change Log, Session Library method userdata() now allows you to fetch all userdata by simply omitting its parameter:
$this->session->userdata();
This makes the all_userdata() method redudant and therefore it is now just an alias for userdata() with the above shown usage and is being deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Note: This method is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v Database Forge method add_column() with an AFTER clause
If you have used the third parameter for Database Forge method add_column() to add a field for an AFTER clause, then you should change its usage.
That third parameter has been deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
You should now put AFTER clause field names in the field definition array instead:
// Old usage:
$field = array(
'new_field' => array('type' => 'TEXT')
);
$this->dbforge->add_column('table_name', $field, 'another_field');
// New usage:
$field = array(
'new_field' => array('type' => 'TEXT', 'after' => 'another_field')
);
$this->dbforge->add_column('table_name', $field);
The parameter is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
Note: This is for MySQL and CUBRID databases only! Other drivers don’t support this clause and will silently ignore it.
v URI Routing methods fetch_directory(), fetch_class(), fetch_method()
With properties CI_Router::$directory, CI_Router::$class and CI_Router::$method being public and their respective fetch_*() no longer doing anything else to just return the properties - it doesn’t make sense to keep them.
Those are all internal, undocumented methods, but we’ve opted to deprecate them for now in order to maintain backwards-compatibility just in case. If some of you have utilized them, then you can now just access the properties instead:
$this->router->directory;
$this->router->class;
$this->router->method;
Note: Those methods are still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove their usage sooner rather than later.
v Input library method is_cli_request()
Calls to the CI_Input::is_cli_request() method are necessary at many places in the CodeIgniter internals and this is often before the Input Library is loaded. Because of that, it is being replaced by a common function named is_cli() and this method is now just an alias.
The new function is both available at all times for you to use and shorter to type.
// Old
$this->input->is_cli_request();
// New
is_cli();
CI_Input::is_cli_request() is now now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
Mote:This method is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v Config library method system_url()
Usage of CI_Config::system_url() encourages insecure coding practices. Namely, your CodeIgniter system/ directory shouldn’t be publicly accessible from a security point of view.
Because of this, this method is now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
This method is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
v The Javascript library
The Javascript Library has always had an ‘experimental’ status and was never really useful, nor a proper solution.
It is now deprecated and scheduled for removal in CodeIgniter 3.1+.
This library is still available, but you’re strongly encouraged to remove its usage sooner rather than later.
Step 21: Check your usage of Text helper highlight_phrase()
The default HTML tag used by Text Helper function highlight_phrase() has been changed from <strong> to the new HTML5 tag <mark>.
Unless you’ve used your own highlighting tags, this might cause trouble for your visitors who use older web browsers such as Internet Explorer 8. We therefore suggest that you add the following code to your CSS files in order to avoid backwards compatibility with old browsers:
mark {
background: #ff0;
color: #000;
};
Many functions now return NULL instead of FALSE on missing items.
Reviewed by soksopheak
on
12:13 AM
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Reviewed by soksopheak
on
12:13 AM
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