Helper Functions

Fluxor provides a set of global helper functions to simplify common tasks.

Application Helpers

app(?string $service = null)

Returns the application instance or a registered service.

// Get application instance
$app = app();

// Get a registered service
$view = app('view');
$router = app('router');
$config = app('config');

base_path(string $path = ''): string

Returns the absolute path to the project root.

$root = base_path();
$configPath = base_path('config/app.php');
$storagePath = base_path('storage/logs');

base_url(string $path = ''): string

Returns the base URL of the application.

$home = base_url();
$apiUrl = base_url('api/users');
$assetUrl = base_url('assets/css/app.css');

asset(string $path): string

Generates a URL for an asset file in the public/assets/ directory.

$css = asset('css/app.css');
$js = asset('js/app.js');
$img = asset('images/logo.png');

config(string $key, $default = null)

Retrieves a configuration value.

$appName = config('app_name', 'Fluxor');
$debug = config('debug', false);
$timezone = config('timezone', 'UTC');

env(string $key, $default = null)

Retrieves an environment variable value.

$appEnv = env('APP_ENV', 'production');
$dbName = env('DB_NAME', 'database');
$apiKey = env('API_KEY');

HTTP Helpers

fetch(string $method, string $url, $body = null): Fetch

Creates an HTTP request using the built-in Fetch client.

// GET request
$users = fetch('GET', 'https://api.example.com/users')->json();

// POST request
$user = fetch('POST', 'https://api.example.com/users', [
    'name' => 'John',
    'email' => 'john@example.com'
])->json();

// With headers
$data = fetch('GET', 'https://api.example.com/me')
    ->header('Authorization', 'Bearer token')
    ->json();

http_status_message(int $code): string

Returns the standard message for an HTTP status code.

echo http_status_message(200);  // "OK"
echo http_status_message(404);  // "Not Found"
echo http_status_message(500);  // "Internal Server Error"

abort(int $code, ?string $message = null): void

Throws an HTTP exception with the given status code.

abort(404);                    // Throws 404 exception
abort(403, 'Access denied');   // Throws 403 with custom message
abort(500);                    // Throws 500 exception

redirect(string $url, int $status = HttpStatusCode::FOUND): Response

Returns a redirect response.

return redirect('/dashboard');
return redirect('/login', HttpStatusCode::TEMPORARY_REDIRECT);
return redirect('https://example.com');

Debug Helpers

dd(...$vars): void

Dumps variables and dies (halts execution).

dd($user, $posts);           // Dumps both variables and stops execution
dd($request->all());          // Dumps all request data
dd($result);                  // Dumps and stops

dump(...$vars): void

Dumps variables without halting execution.

dump($user);                  // Prints user data, continues execution
dump($request->headers);      // Prints headers
dump($data, $meta);           // Prints multiple variables

Complete Example

<?php
// app/router/users/[id].php

use Fluxor\Flow;
use Fluxor\Response;
use Fluxor\Exceptions\NotFoundException;
use Fluxor\Fetch;

Flow::GET()->do(function($req) {
    $userId = $req->param('id');
    
    // Use helper functions
    $logPath = base_path('storage/logs');
    $apiUrl = base_url('api/users');
    $isDebug = env('APP_DEBUG', false);
    
    // Make external API request
    $user = fetch('GET', "https://api.example.com/users/{$userId}")->json();
    
    if (!$user) {
        throw new NotFoundException('User not found');
    }
    
    // Debug in development
    if ($isDebug) {
        dump($userData);
    }
    
    return Response::success($userData);
});

Environment File Example

Create a .env file in your project root:

# Application Configuration
APP_NAME="My Fluxor App"
APP_ENV=development
APP_DEBUG=true
APP_TIMEZONE=UTC

# Database Configuration
DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=fluxor_db
DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=secret

Notes

• All helper functions are globally available without namespaces
• Functions are only defined if they don't already exist (safe to use)
• The app() function can access any registered service
• Use dd() for quick debugging, remove before production
• abort() is useful for early error handling in routes
• The fetch() helper provides a convenient shortcut to the Fetch class
• Environment variables support interpolation: APP_URL=${BASE_URL}/api
• Boolean values are automatically cast: true, false, null
• Multi-line values are supported with quotes