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Request #53895 debug_zval_dump should be by ref
Submitted: 2011-01-31 23:43 UTC Modified: 2011-02-04 22:15 UTC
Votes:1
Avg. Score:3.0 ± 0.0
Reproduced:0 of 0 (0.0%)
From: + at ni-po dot com Assigned:
Status: Wont fix Package: Variables related
PHP Version: 5.3.5 OS:
Private report: No CVE-ID: None
View Developer Edit
 [2011-01-31 23:43 UTC] + at ni-po dot com 
Description:
------------
debug_zval_dump should accept the variable by reference.

Currently one can call the function either via debug_zval_dump($var) or debug_zval_dump(&$var). As the latter is as deprecated as it gets (i.e. parse-time deprecated) and is even removed in trunk, the function should be defined as accepting the variable by reference, because this is the usual use case.

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 [2011-02-01 05:35 UTC] aharvey@php.net
-Type: Bug +Type: Feature/Change Request -Package: Unknown/Other Function +Package: Variables related
 [2011-02-01 13:49 UTC] cataphract@php.net
-Status: Open +Status: Wont fix
 [2011-02-01 13:49 UTC] cataphract@php.net 
I disagree. Receiving the variable by reference would solve nothing, as it would force a separation on zvals with refcount > 1.

What actually ought to be done is make debug_zval_dump work like xdebug's version and accepting a string.
 [2011-02-01 15:13 UTC] + at ni-po dot com 
That would obviously be even better. I just wanted to note, that something must be changed about it.
 [2011-02-04 22:15 UTC] johannes@php.net 
The string version won't help for all cases, as you can't adress array elements or objects properly then. So there's no good way.
 [2011-02-05 11:47 UTC] + at ni-po dot com 
Hm, the problem seems to be more complicated when I thought. The only thing I can think of, that would allow arrays and objects, too, is to provide a function zval_is_ref that checks, whether the zval is_ref and then provide two function, zval_dump_by_ref and zval_dump_by_val.

Imho this would cover all cases, but I assume that that's too many functions.
 [2014-08-15 03:46 UTC] ky dot patterson at adlinkr dot com 
As others have pointed out, debug_zval_dump is fundamentally limited because it is a function, and so zend will alter or copy the argument's zval.

I *think* the solution is actually to add new language constructs, and I have opened a bug to discuss that:
https://bugs.php.net/bug.php?id=67847

Posting here because the people on this bug may have something to say about the one I just submitted.
 
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