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Php 8.4: features, improvements, and deprecations you need to know

·5 min read
php
performance
server

PHP 8.4 introduces several exciting features and improvements while deprecating or removing outdated functionality. Here’s a comprehensive overview of what’s new and what’s changed.

🚀 Key Features and Improvements in PHP 8.4

1. Property Hooks

Property hooks allow custom behavior when accessing, modifying, or unsetting class properties. This eliminates the need for boilerplate getter and setter methods.

Example:

class Demo {
    private string $name;
// Getter for 'name' with a hook to modify its value
public function __get(string $name): mixed {
    if ($name === 'name') {
        return strtoupper($this->$name); // Modify property on get
    }
    return null;
}

// Setter for 'name' with a hook to modify its value
public function __set(string $name, mixed $value): void {
    if ($name === 'name') {
        $this->$name = strtolower($value); // Modify value before setting
    }
}

}

$demo = new Demo();
$demo->name = 'John Doe';  // Automatically converted to lowercase
echo $demo->name;          // Outputs: JOHN DOE

2. Asymmetric Visibility

You can now define different visibility levels for property getters and setters. For instance, a property can have a public getter but a private setter.

Example:

class User {
    private string $password;
// Public getter for the password
public function getPassword(): string {
    return $this->password;
}

// Private setter for the password
private function setPassword(string $password): void {
    $this->password = $password;
}

public function __construct(string $password) {
    $this->setPassword($password); // Set the password using the private setter
}

}

$user = new User('supersecret');
echo $user->getPassword();  // Outputs: supersecret

3. MyClass()->method() Without Parentheses

PHP 8.4 simplifies syntax by allowing methods without parentheses if they take no parameters.

Example:

class Example {
    public function hello() {
        return "Hello, World!";
    }
}

// No parentheses needed
echo new Example()->hello();  // Outputs: Hello, World!

4. HTML5 Support

PHP 8.4 improves compatibility with modern web development by enhancing functions like htmlspecialchars() and htmlentities() for better handling of HTML5 attributes and entities.

Example:

$htmlContent = '<input type="text" value="John & Jane">';
echo htmlspecialchars($htmlContent, ENT_QUOTES | ENT_HTML5);
// Outputs: &lt;input type=&quot;text&quot; value=&quot;John &amp; Jane&quot;&gt;

5. JIT Changes

The Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler has been refined for better performance in real-world scenarios, particularly for computation-heavy scripts and long-running processes. You can control JIT via opcache.jit.

6. Lazy Objects

Lazy objects are instantiated only when accessed, improving memory usage and performance in applications with complex objects.

Example:

// Lazy initialization of a complex object
$lazyObject = new LazyObject(fn() => new ExpensiveClass());

This helps in cases where creating the object upfront would be too costly, and its initialization is deferred until needed.

7. Exit and Die as Functions

The exit and die constructs are now proper functions, enabling their use in variable function calls or callbacks.

Example:

// Now supports variable function calls
$func = 'exit';
$func('Goodbye!');  // Outputs: Goodbye!

8. Multibyte Trim Functions

With mb_trim(), PHP 8.4 introduces trimming functions that handle multibyte characters, making string manipulation more reliable for non-ASCII languages.

Example:

$text = "  こんにちは  ";
echo mb_trim($text);  // Outputs: こんにちは

This feature is crucial for working with languages like Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, where regular trimming functions may not work correctly.

📉 Deprecations in PHP 8.4

PHP 8.4 deprecates several outdated features, encouraging developers to adopt modern practices. Below is the complete list of deprecations and removals.

1. DOMDocument and DOMEntity Properties

The soft-deprecated properties in DOMDocument and DOMEntity are formally deprecated.

2. E_STRICT Constant

The E_STRICT constant has been deprecated since its functionality is already included in other error levels.

3. strtok()

The strtok() function is deprecated due to its limited usage compared to modern alternatives like explode() or preg_split().

4. User Output Handlers

Two key deprecations include:

  • Returning non-string values from user-defined output handlers.
  • Producing output directly within an output handler.

5. file_put_contents() with Arrays

Passing an array as $data to file_put_contents() is no longer supported. Use a string instead.

Example:

// Deprecated:
file_put_contents('file.txt', ['Hello', 'World']);

// Correct approach:
file_put_contents('file.txt', "Hello\nWorld");

6. MySQLi Deprecations

Several MySQLi functions are deprecated, including:

  • mysqli_ping()
  • mysqli_refresh()
  • mysqli_kill()
  • Second parameter for mysqli_store_result()

7. DOMImplementation::getFeature()

The DOMImplementation::getFeature() method has been removed.

8. Deprecation of Hashing Functions

The following functions are deprecated due to security and performance concerns:

  • md5()
  • sha1()
  • md5_file()
  • sha1_file()

9. uniqid() and lcg_value()

These functions are deprecated for their inability to generate cryptographically secure or reliable unique values.

10. Other Notable Deprecations

  • Session configurations: session.sid_length and session.sid_bits_per_character.
  • Legacy constants: SUNFUNCS_RET_STRING, SUNFUNCS_RET_DOUBLE, SUNFUNCS_RET_TIMESTAMP.
  • SOAP_FUNCTIONS_ALL constant for SoapServer::addFunction().
  • Deprecation of proprietary CSV escaping mechanisms.

Conclusion

PHP 8.4 builds upon its strong foundation with powerful features like property hooks, lazy objects, and asymmetric visibility, while addressing outdated and insecure functionalities. It strikes a balance between innovation and modernization, making it a must-consider upgrade for developers.

Are you ready to adopt PHP 8.4? Let us know your thoughts!