Скачать или смотреть How to Prevent JMSSerializer from Returning Null Values and Empty Arrays

Learn how to configure JMSSerializer in PHP to avoid returning null values and empty arrays in your JSON output. Follow this guide for effective serialization!
---
This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/73279045/ asked by the user 'MatDepInfo' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/9039715/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/73405479/ provided by the user 'MatDepInfo' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/9039715/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

Visit these links for original content and any more details, such as alternate solutions, latest updates/developments on topic, comments, revision history etc. For example, the original title of the Question was: JMSSerializer don't return null value and empty array

Also, Content (except music) licensed under CC BY-SA https://meta.stackexchange.com/help/l...
The original Question post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license, and the original Answer post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license.

If anything seems off to you, please feel free to write me at vlogize [AT] gmail [DOT] com.
---
How to Prevent JMSSerializer from Returning Null Values and Empty Arrays

When working with serialization in PHP, particularly with the JMSSerializer library, you might encounter a common issue: unwanted null values and empty arrays cluttering your JSON output. If you want to keep your serialized JSON cleaner and more readable, this post will guide you through the steps to achieve just that.

The Problem: Unwanted Nulls and Empty Arrays

In your code, after serialization, your JSON looks like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

As you can see, there are multiple fields returning null and a few empty arrays. You prefer a cleaner output, such as:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

In your current implementation, using $context->setSerializeNull(TRUE); successfully omits the null fields, but you still end up with empty arrays in your output. Let's dive into how to handle that.

The Solution: Using Annotations

While there isn't a direct method in the serialization context to skip empty arrays, you can achieve the desired output using an annotation called @ SkipWhenEmpty. This annotation allows you to specify that certain properties should be skipped if they are empty, thus streamlining your JSON.

Step-by-Step Implementation

Ensure Annotations are Enabled: Make sure that your entities (the classes you are serializing) have annotations enabled. If you haven't yet enabled annotations, you may need to configure your serializer appropriately.

Apply the @ SkipWhenEmpty Annotation: For every property in your class that you want to skip when it's empty, add the @ SkipWhenEmpty annotation.

Here’s an example:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Serialize as Usual: After applying the annotation, you can generate your JSON with the same serialization context you’ve set up:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Final Thoughts

Using the @ SkipWhenEmpty annotation is an efficient way to streamline your serialized outputs and ensure that only necessary data is presented. This not only improves readability but also makes your API responses cleaner and more efficient.

By following these simple steps, you can eliminate both null values and empty arrays from your serialized JSON, providing users with precisely the information they need.

Feel free to reach out if you have any further questions, and happy coding!