# Fluent ORM: Serialization

Fluent Framework ORM

# Introduction

When building JSON APIs, you will often need to convert your models and relationships to arrays or JSON. Fluent ORM includes convenient methods for making these conversions, as well as controlling which attributes are included in your serializations.

# Serializing Models & Collections

# Serializing To Arrays

To convert a model and its loaded relationships to an array, you should use the toArray method. This method is recursive, so all attributes and all relations (including the relations of relations) will be converted to arrays:

$form = FluentForm\App\Models\Form::with('submissions')->first();
 
return $form->toArray();

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You may also convert entire collections of models to arrays:

$form = FluentForm\App\Models\Form::all();
 
return $form->toArray();

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# Serializing To JSON

To convert a model to JSON, you should use the toJson method. Like toArray, the toJson method is recursive, so all attributes and relations will be converted to JSON. You may also specify JSON encoding options supported by PHP:

$form = FluentForm\App\Models\Form::find(1);
 
return $form->toJson();
 
return $form->toJson(JSON_PRETTY_PRINT);

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# Hiding Attributes From JSON

Sometimes you may wish to limit the attributes, such as passwords, that are included in your model's array or JSON representation. To do so, add a $hidden property to your model:

<?php
 
namespace FluentForm\App\Models;
 
use FluentForm\Framework\Database\Orm\Model;
 
class Form extends Model
{
    /**
     * The attributes that should be hidden for arrays.
     *
     * @var array
     */
    protected $hidden = ['type'];
}

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# Temporarily Modifying Attribute Visibility

If you would like to make some typically hidden attributes visible on a given model instance, you may use the makeVisible method. The makeVisible method returns the model instance for convenient method chaining:

return $form->makeVisible('attribute')->toArray();

Likewise, if you would like to make some typically visible attributes hidden on a given model instance, you may use the makeHidden method.

return $form->makeHidden('attribute')->toArray();

# Appending Values To JSON

Occasionally, when casting models to an array or JSON, you may wish to add attributes that do not have a corresponding column in your database. To do so, first define an accessor for the value:

<?php
 
namespace FluentForm\App\Models;
 
use FluentForm\Framework\Database\Orm\Model;
 
class Form extends Model
{
    /**
     * Get the type flag for the form.
     *
     * @return bool
     */
    public function getConvTypeAttribute()
    {
        return $this->attributes['type'] == 'conversational_form';
    }
}

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After creating the accessor, add the attribute name to the appends property on the model. Note that attribute names are typically referenced in "snake case", even though the accessor is defined using "camel case":

<?php
 
namespace FluentForm\App\Models;
 
use FluentForm\Framework\Database\Orm\Model;
 
class Form extends Model
{
    /**
     * The accessors to append to the model's array form.
     *
     * @var array
     */
    protected $appends = ['has_payment'];
}

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Once the attribute has been added to the appends list, it will be included in both the model's array and JSON representations. Attributes in the appends array will also respect the visible and hidden settings configured on the model.

# Appending At Run Time

You may instruct a single model instance to append attributes using the append method. Or, you may use the setAppends method to override the entire array of appended properties for a given model instance:

return $form->append('has_payment')->toArray();
 
return $form->setAppends(['has_payment'])->toArray();

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