README

A PHP XML parser class that provides an easy way to convert XML into native PHP arrays and back again. It has no dependencies on any external libraries or extensions bundled with PHP. The entire parser is concisely written in PHP.

This project is actively maintained. It is used in our production code. If you spot an issue, please let us know through the Issues section on our Github project page: https://github.com/revnode/xml/issues

Why

As XML becomes less popular, the need for a parser moves from constant to infrequent. It makes little sense to keep a parser resident in memory at all times for functionality that might be used once every few days.

For example, just to get SimpleXML going, you will need to have the libxml2 library installed on your system. You will need xml, libxml, and simplexml extensions installed for PHP. You will need to keep all those extensions in memory for each request.

In contrast, this simple parser is less than 500 lines of code and is only loaded when you need it. It has no dependencies, no required libraries or extensions, and will work on any modern PHP installation. The price you pay for that convenience is speed. It is much slower than SimpleXML. See the benchmarking section for details.

In short, this project makes sense for those who want to simplify their PHP install and use, have a need for a simple XML parser, but don't much care about speed.

Requirements

PHP 5.4.0+

Install

$composer require uspilot/xml_parser

Design Goals

Zero dependencies on external libraries or PHP extensions.
Provide a parser from and to the XML standard.
Provide support for the most commonly used parts of the XML standard.
Maintain a minimal memory footprint during operation, even for large XML files.
Maintain a codebase that is less than 1000 lines. Currently at less than 500 lines.

Usage

XML String to PHP Array

<?php

require 'xml.php';
use USPilot\XML;

$xml = new XML('<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?>
<breakfast_menu>
	<food>
		<name>Waffles</name>
	</food>
</breakfast_menu>');
var_dump($xml->data);

?>

XML File to PHP Array

<?php

require 'xml.php';
use USPilot\XML;

$xml = new XML('some_xml_file.xml');
var_dump($xml->data);

?>

PHP Array to XML String

<?php

require 'xml.php';
use USPilot\XML;

$xml = new XML([
	'breakfast_menu' => [
		[
			'food' => [
				'name' => 'Waffles'
			]
		]
	]
]);
echo $xml;

?>

License

MIT, see LICENSE.md

uspilot / xml_parser

Maintainers

Details