Development:Developer FAQ: Difference between revisions
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===How do I get/set configuration settings?=== | ===How do I get/set configuration settings?=== | ||
To get config values you would typically access the global $CFG object directly, which is automatically | To get config values you would typically access the global $CFG object directly, which is automatically created by the core Moodle scripts. To set these "main" config values use set_config($name, $value). The values are stored in the Moodle "config" database table, but these functions take care of cacheing on your behalf, so you should always use these rather than fetching the records directly. | ||
There is also a second table of config settings specifically for plugins ("config_plugin"). These are not automatically loaded into the $CFG object, so to fetch these you would use get_config($plugin, $name). To set them use set_config($name, $value, $plugin). | There is also a second table of config settings specifically for plugins ("config_plugin"). These are not automatically loaded into the $CFG object, so to fetch these you would use get_config($plugin, $name). To set them use set_config($name, $value, $plugin). | ||
Revision as of 13:56, 6 April 2006
Help for new coders
Where can "newbies" to Moodle get help?
The General developer forum! Feel free to ask any question, no matter how basic or advanced. Many people ask different levels of question every day, and the community is generally welcoming and quick to respond.
Moodle's database
Where can I see a schema for the structure of the Moodle database?
When installing Moodle, the database tables are generated and updated by various db-handling scripts located in various places. There is no canonical schema representation, although the coding guidelines for database structure give an outline of the general approach.
How to get/set information when writing new Moodle code
How do I find out the currently-logged-on user?
The global object $USER, which contains the numeric $USER->id among other things.
How do I find out the current course?
...
How do I insert/retrieve records in the database, without creating my own database connections?
Always use the "datalib" functions, such as insert_record() or get_record(). This helps with database abstraction (e.g. running on either MySQL or Postgres) as well as maintaining a single database connection. Moodle uses ADODB for database abstraction.
Look at the documentation for datalib.php for the list of functions and details of use.
How do I get/set configuration settings?
To get config values you would typically access the global $CFG object directly, which is automatically created by the core Moodle scripts. To set these "main" config values use set_config($name, $value). The values are stored in the Moodle "config" database table, but these functions take care of cacheing on your behalf, so you should always use these rather than fetching the records directly.
There is also a second table of config settings specifically for plugins ("config_plugin"). These are not automatically loaded into the $CFG object, so to fetch these you would use get_config($plugin, $name). To set them use set_config($name, $value, $plugin).
