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PHP-Parser/README.md
2012-02-21 19:58:11 +01:00

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PHP Parser
==========
This is a PHP 5.4 (and older) parser written in PHP. It's purpose is to simplify static code analysis and
manipulation.
Documentation can be found in the [`doc/`][1] directory.
***Note: This project is experimental, so the API is subject to change.***
In a Nutshell
-------------
Basically, the parser does nothing more than turn some PHP code into an abstract syntax tree. ("nothing
more" is kind of sarcastic here as PHP has a ... uhm, let's just say "not nice" ... grammar, which makes
parsing PHP very hard.)
For example, if you stick this code in the parser:
```php
<?php
echo 'Hi', 'World';
hello\world('foo', 'bar' . 'baz');
```
You'll get a syntax tree looking roughly like this:
```
array(
0: Stmt_Echo(
exprs: array(
0: Scalar_String(
value: Hi
)
1: Scalar_String(
value: World
)
)
)
1: Expr_FuncCall(
name: Name(
parts: array(
0: hello
1: world
)
)
args: array(
0: Arg(
value: Scalar_String(
value: foo
)
byRef: false
)
1: Arg(
value: Expr_Concat(
left: Scalar_String(
value: bar
)
right: Scalar_String(
value: baz
)
)
byRef: false
)
)
)
)
```
You can then work with this syntax tree, for example to statically analyze the code (e.g. to find
programming errors or security issues).
Additionally, you can convert a syntax tree back to PHP code. This allows you to do code preprocessing
(like automatedly porting code to older PHP versions).
So, that's it, in a nutshell. You can find everything else in the [docs][1].
[1]: https://github.com/nikic/PHP-Parser/tree/master/doc