How Can I Safely Manipulate Multidimensional Arrays Using String Paths in PHP?

Dynamic Array Manipulation Using String Paths

In an intriguing coding challenge, developers seek to manipulate arrays using strings provided by users. The objective is to set array values based on string paths, transforming "my_array.data.subarray = value" into $data'my_array'['subarray'] = 'value'.

To achieve this, the input string is tokenized, separating the value from the array path. The path is further split into an array of keys.

The challenge lies in navigating the multidimensional array using these keys. Resorting to eval() would be an unsafe approach, hence the need for a more robust method.

Elegant Solution with Reference Operator

The reference operator (&) in PHP allows programmers to access and modify variables indirectly. Exploiting this capability, an elegant solution arises.

1. Create a temporary variable $temp that initially references the root of the array ($data).
2. Iterate through each key in $exploded, using the reference operator to advance $temp to successive levels of the array.
3. Once the desired level is reached, assign the value to $temp.
4. Unset $temp to break the reference and prevent unintended modifications.

This method effectively traverses the array hierarchy without resorting to eval(), providing a safe and efficient means of manipulating arrays based on user-defined strings.

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