search
HomeBackend DevelopmentPHP TutorialHow to Test for Equal JSON Columns in Laravel Models

How to Test for Equal JSON Columns in Laravel Models

Testing equality between JSON columns in Laravel requires special consideration since JSON data is stored as strings in the database. Differences in how JSON is encoded can lead to unexpected test failures when comparing JSON columns. This article will guide you on effectively comparing JSON columns in your Laravel application's tests.

Understanding the Challenge

When JSON data is stored in the database, it is saved as a string. Minor differences in JSON encoding, such as spacing or ordering of keys, can cause direct string comparisons to fail. This means that even if the content is logically equivalent, tests using $this->assertDatabaseHas() might fail.

Example Model

First, consider the PriceSchedule model, which includes JSON columns:

final class PriceSchedule extends Model
{
    protected $fillable = [
        'user_id',
        'price_supplier_id',
        'weekday',
        'hour',
        'is_active'
    ];

    protected $casts = [
        'weekday' => 'array',
        'hour' => 'array',
    ];
}

The weekday and hour attributes are cast to arrays, allowing easy manipulation in your application.

Writing the Test

Here's an example test for updating a PriceSchedule:

final class PriceExportScheduleTest extends TestCase
{
    public function test_price_export_schedule_update(): void
    {
        $user = UserFactory::new()->create();
        $this->actingAsFrontendUser($user);

        $priceSchedule = PriceScheduleFactory::new()->make();

        $updatedData = [
            'weekday' => $this->faker->randomElements(DayOfWeek::values(), 3),
            'hour' => $priceSchedule->hour,
            'is_active' => true,
        ];

        $response = $this->putJson(route('api-v2:price-export.suppliers.schedules.update'), $updatedData);

        $response->assertNoContent();

        $this->assertDatabaseHas(PriceSchedule::class, [
            'user_id' => $user->id,
            'is_active' => $updatedData['is_active'],
            'weekday' => $updatedData['weekday'],
            'hour' => $updatedData['hour'],
        ]);
    }
}

Common Issue with JSON Comparisons

When using $this->assertDatabaseHas() to compare JSON-type values like weekday and hour, direct comparisons may fail due to differences in JSON encoding. For example:

  • Database-stored JSON: {"key":"value"}
  • PHP-generated JSON: { "key": "value" }

Even though the data is logically identical, the test might fail because the strings differ.

Solution: Use $this->castAsJson()

To ensure consistent comparisons, use $this->castAsJson() when asserting JSON columns:

$this->assertDatabaseHas(PriceSchedule::class, [
    'user_id' => $user->id,
    'is_active' => $updatedData['is_active'],
    'weekday' => $this->castAsJson($updatedData['weekday']),
    'hour' => $this->castAsJson($updatedData['hour']),
]);

This method ensures that both the test data and the database data are cast to a common JSON format before comparison.

Test Output

Running the test produces the following result:

Price Export Schedule (PriceExportSchedule)
✔ Price export schedule update
OK (1 test, 3 assertions)

By using $this->castAsJson(), you can avoid JSON encoding issues and ensure that your tests are both reliable and
accurate.

The above is the detailed content of How to Test for Equal JSON Columns in Laravel Models. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!

Statement
The content of this article is voluntarily contributed by netizens, and the copyright belongs to the original author. This site does not assume corresponding legal responsibility. If you find any content suspected of plagiarism or infringement, please contact admin@php.cn
Explain how load balancing affects session management and how to address it.Explain how load balancing affects session management and how to address it.Apr 29, 2025 am 12:42 AM

Load balancing affects session management, but can be resolved with session replication, session stickiness, and centralized session storage. 1. Session Replication Copy session data between servers. 2. Session stickiness directs user requests to the same server. 3. Centralized session storage uses independent servers such as Redis to store session data to ensure data sharing.

Explain the concept of session locking.Explain the concept of session locking.Apr 29, 2025 am 12:39 AM

Sessionlockingisatechniqueusedtoensureauser'ssessionremainsexclusivetooneuseratatime.Itiscrucialforpreventingdatacorruptionandsecuritybreachesinmulti-userapplications.Sessionlockingisimplementedusingserver-sidelockingmechanisms,suchasReentrantLockinJ

Are there any alternatives to PHP sessions?Are there any alternatives to PHP sessions?Apr 29, 2025 am 12:36 AM

Alternatives to PHP sessions include Cookies, Token-based Authentication, Database-based Sessions, and Redis/Memcached. 1.Cookies manage sessions by storing data on the client, which is simple but low in security. 2.Token-based Authentication uses tokens to verify users, which is highly secure but requires additional logic. 3.Database-basedSessions stores data in the database, which has good scalability but may affect performance. 4. Redis/Memcached uses distributed cache to improve performance and scalability, but requires additional matching

Define the term 'session hijacking' in the context of PHP.Define the term 'session hijacking' in the context of PHP.Apr 29, 2025 am 12:33 AM

Sessionhijacking refers to an attacker impersonating a user by obtaining the user's sessionID. Prevention methods include: 1) encrypting communication using HTTPS; 2) verifying the source of the sessionID; 3) using a secure sessionID generation algorithm; 4) regularly updating the sessionID.

What is the full form of PHP?What is the full form of PHP?Apr 28, 2025 pm 04:58 PM

The article discusses PHP, detailing its full form, main uses in web development, comparison with Python and Java, and its ease of learning for beginners.

How does PHP handle form data?How does PHP handle form data?Apr 28, 2025 pm 04:57 PM

PHP handles form data using $\_POST and $\_GET superglobals, with security ensured through validation, sanitization, and secure database interactions.

What is the difference between PHP and ASP.NET?What is the difference between PHP and ASP.NET?Apr 28, 2025 pm 04:56 PM

The article compares PHP and ASP.NET, focusing on their suitability for large-scale web applications, performance differences, and security features. Both are viable for large projects, but PHP is open-source and platform-independent, while ASP.NET,

Is PHP a case-sensitive language?Is PHP a case-sensitive language?Apr 28, 2025 pm 04:55 PM

PHP's case sensitivity varies: functions are insensitive, while variables and classes are sensitive. Best practices include consistent naming and using case-insensitive functions for comparisons.

See all articles

Hot AI Tools

Undresser.AI Undress

Undresser.AI Undress

AI-powered app for creating realistic nude photos

AI Clothes Remover

AI Clothes Remover

Online AI tool for removing clothes from photos.

Undress AI Tool

Undress AI Tool

Undress images for free

Clothoff.io

Clothoff.io

AI clothes remover

Video Face Swap

Video Face Swap

Swap faces in any video effortlessly with our completely free AI face swap tool!

Hot Tools

WebStorm Mac version

WebStorm Mac version

Useful JavaScript development tools

mPDF

mPDF

mPDF is a PHP library that can generate PDF files from UTF-8 encoded HTML. The original author, Ian Back, wrote mPDF to output PDF files "on the fly" from his website and handle different languages. It is slower than original scripts like HTML2FPDF and produces larger files when using Unicode fonts, but supports CSS styles etc. and has a lot of enhancements. Supports almost all languages, including RTL (Arabic and Hebrew) and CJK (Chinese, Japanese and Korean). Supports nested block-level elements (such as P, DIV),

SublimeText3 English version

SublimeText3 English version

Recommended: Win version, supports code prompts!

SecLists

SecLists

SecLists is the ultimate security tester's companion. It is a collection of various types of lists that are frequently used during security assessments, all in one place. SecLists helps make security testing more efficient and productive by conveniently providing all the lists a security tester might need. List types include usernames, passwords, URLs, fuzzing payloads, sensitive data patterns, web shells, and more. The tester can simply pull this repository onto a new test machine and he will have access to every type of list he needs.

Notepad++7.3.1

Notepad++7.3.1

Easy-to-use and free code editor