1 This files describes API changes in core libraries and APIs,
2 information provided here is intended especially for developers.
6 * Use new methods from core_component class instead of get_core_subsystems(), get_plugin_types(),
7 get_plugin_list(), get_plugin_list_with_class(), get_plugin_directory(), normalize_component(),
8 get_component_directory() and get_plugin_list_with_file(). The names of the new methods are
9 exactly the same, the only differences are that core_component::get_plugin_types() now always returns
10 full paths and core_component::get_plugin_list() does not accept empty parameter any more.
11 * Use core_text::* instead of textlib:: and also core_collator::* instead of collatorlib::*.
12 * Use new function moodleform::mock_submit() to simulate form submission in unit tests (backported).
13 * New $CFG->localcachedir setting useful for cluster nodes. Admins have to update X-Sendfile aliases if used.
14 * MS SQL Server drivers are now using NVARCHAR(MAX) instead of NTEXT and VARBINARY(MAX) instead of IMAGE,
15 this change should be fully transparent and it should help significantly with add-on compatibility.
16 * The string manager classes were renamed. Note that they should not be modified or used directly,
17 always use get_string_manager() to get instance of the string manager.
18 * The ability to use an 'insecure' rc4encrypt/rc4decrypt key has been removed.
19 * Use $CFG->debugdeveloper instead of debugging('', DEBUG_DEVELOPER).
20 * Use set_debugging(DEBUG_xxx) when changing debugging level for current request.
21 * Function moveto_module() does not modify $mod argument and instead now returns the new module visibility value.
22 * Use behat_selectors::get_allowed_text_selectors() and behat_selectors::get_allowed_selectors() instead of
23 behat_command::$allowedtextselectors and behat_command::$allowedselectors
24 * Subplugins are supported in admin tools and local plugins.
25 * file_packer/zip_packer API has been modified so that key functions support a new file_progress interface
26 to report progress during long operations. Related to this, zip_archive now supports an estimated_count()
27 function that returns an approximate number of entries in the zip faster than the count() function.
28 * Class cm_info no longer extends stdClass. All properties are read-only and calculated on first request only.
29 * Class course_modinfo no longer extends stdClass. All properties are read-only.
30 * Database fields modinfo and sectioncache in table course are removed. Application cache core/coursemodinfo
31 is used instead. Course cache is still reset, rebuilt and retrieved using function rebuild_course_cache() and
32 get_fast_modinfo(). Purging all caches and every core upgrade purges course modinfo cache as well.
33 If function get_fast_modinfo() is called for multiple courses make sure to include field cacherev in course
35 * Internal (noreply and support) user support has been added for sending/receiving message.
36 Use core_user::get_noreply_user() and core_user::get_support_user() to get noreply and support user's respectively.
37 Real users can be used as noreply/support users by setting $CFG->noreplyuserid and $CFG->supportuserid
38 * New function readfile_allow_large() in filelib.php for use when very large files may need sending to user.
41 Various previously deprecated functions have now been altered to throw DEBUG_DEVELOPER debugging notices
42 and will be removed in a future release (target: 2.8), a summary follows:
45 * get_context_instance() -> context_xxxx::instance()
46 * get_context_instance_by_id() -> context::instance_by_id($id)
47 * get_system_context() -> context_system::instance()
48 * context_moved() -> context::update_moved()
49 * preload_course_contexts() -> context_helper::preload_course()
50 * context_instance_preload() -> context_helper::preload_from_record()
51 * context_instance_preload_sql() -> context_helper::get_preload_record_columns_sql()
52 * get_contextlevel_name() -> context_helper::get_level_name()
53 * create_contexts() -> context_helper::create_instances()
54 * cleanup_contexts() -> context_helper::cleanup_instances()
55 * build_context_path() -> context_helper::build_all_paths()
56 * print_context_name() -> $context->get_context_name()
57 * mark_context_dirty() -> $context->mark_dirty()
58 * delete_context() -> $context->delete_content() or context_helper::delete_instance()
59 * get_context_url() -> $context->get_url()
60 * get_course_context() -> $context->get_course_context()
61 * get_parent_contexts() -> $context->get_parent_context_ids()
62 * get_parent_contextid() -> $context->get_parent_context()
63 * get_child_contexts() -> $context->get_child_contexts()
64 * rebuild_contexts() -> $context->reset_paths()
65 * get_user_courses_bycap() -> enrol_get_users_courses()
66 * get_courseid_from_context() -> $context->get_course_context(false)
67 * get_role_context_caps() -> (no replacement)
68 * load_temp_role() -> (no replacement)
69 * remove_temp_roles() -> (no replacement)
70 * get_related_contexts_string() -> $context->get_parent_context_ids(true)
71 * get_recent_enrolments() -> (no replacement)
74 * get_course_participants() -> get_enrolled_users()
75 * is_course_participant() -> is_enrolled()
78 * current_theme() -> $PAGE->theme->name
79 * skip_main_destination() -> $OUTPUT->skip_link_target()
80 * print_container() -> $OUTPUT->container()
81 * print_container_start() -> $OUTPUT->container_start()
82 * print_container_end() -> $OUTPUT->container_end()
83 * print_continue() -> $OUTPUT->continue_button()
84 * print_header() -> $PAGE methods
85 * print_header_simple() -> $PAGE methods
86 * print_side_block() -> $OUTPUT->block()
87 * print_arrow() -> $OUTPUT->arrow()
88 * print_scale_menu_helpbutton() -> $OUTPUT->help_icon_scale($courseid, $scale)
89 * print_checkbox() -> html_writer::checkbox()
92 * print_navigation() -> $OUTPUT->navbar()
93 * build_navigation() -> $PAGE->navbar methods
94 * navmenu() -> (no replacement)
97 * add_event() -> calendar_event::create()
98 * update_event() -> calendar_event->update()
99 * delete_event() -> calendar_event->delete()
100 * hide_event() -> calendar_event->toggle_visibility(false)
101 * show_event() -> calendar_event->toggle_visibility(true)
104 * filter_text() -> format_text(), format_string()...
105 * httpsrequired() -> $PAGE->https_required()
106 * detect_munged_arguments() -> clean_param([...], PARAM_FILE)
107 * mygroupid() -> groups_get_all_groups()
108 * js_minify() -> core_minify::js_files()
109 * css_minify_css() -> core_minify::css_files()
110 * course_modinfo::build_section_cache() -> (no replacement)
111 * generate_email_supportuser() -> core_user::get_support_user()
113 User-agent related functions:
114 * check_browser_operating_system() -> core_useragent::check_browser_operating_system()
115 * check_browser_version() -> core_useragent::check_browser_version()
116 * get_device_type() -> core_useragent::get_device_type()
117 * get_device_type_list() -> core_useragent::get_device_type_list()
118 * get_selected_theme_for_device_type() -> core_useragent::get_device_type_theme()
119 * get_device_cfg_var_name() -> core_useragent::get_device_type_cfg_var_name()
120 * set_user_device_type() -> core_useragent::set_user_device_type()
121 * get_user_device_type() -> core_useragent::get_user_device_type()
122 * get_browser_version_classes() -> core_useragent::get_browser_version_classes()
125 * moodle-core-notification has been deprecated with a recommendation of
126 using its subclasses instead. This is to allow for reduced page
127 transport costs. Current subclasses include:
134 Event triggering and event handlers:
135 * All existing events and event handlers should be replaced by new
136 event classes and matching new event observers.
137 * See http://docs.moodle.org/dev/Event_2 for more information.
138 * The following events will be entirely removed, though they can still
139 be captured using handlers, but they should not be used any more.
140 * groups_members_removed -> \core\event\group_member_removed
141 * groups_groupings_groups_removed -> (no replacement)
142 * groups_groups_deleted -> \core\event\group_deleted
143 * groups_groupings_deleted -> \core\event\grouping_deleted
147 * New get_course() function for use when obtaining the course record from database. Will
148 reuse existing $COURSE or $SITE globals if possible to improve performance.
152 * The database drivers (moodle_database and subclasses) aren't using anymore the ::columns property
153 for caching database metadata. MUC (databasemeta) is used instead. Any custom DB driver should
154 apply for that change.
155 * The cron output has been changed to include time and memory usage (see cron_trace_time_and_memory()),
156 so any custom utility relying on the old output may require modification.
157 * Function get_max_file_sizes now returns an option for (for example) "Course limit (500MB)" or
158 "Site limit (200MB)" when appropriate with the option set to 0. This function no longer returns
159 an option for 0 bytes. Existing code that was replacing the 0 option in the return
160 from this function with a more sensible message, can now use the return from this function directly.
161 * Functions responsible for output in course/lib.php are deprecated, the code is moved to
162 appropriate renderers: print_section(), print_section_add_menus(), get_print_section_cm_text(),
163 make_editing_buttons()
164 See functions' phpdocs in lib/deprecatedlib.php
165 * Function get_print_section_cm_text() is deprecated, replaced with methods in cm_info
166 * zip_packer may create empty zip archives, there is a new option to ignore
167 problematic files when creating archive
168 * The function delete_course_module was deprecated and has been replaced with
169 course_delete_module. The reason for this was because the function delete_course_module
170 only partially deletes data, so wherever it was called extra code was needed to
171 perform the whole deletion process. The function course_delete_module now takes care
172 of the whole process.
173 * curl::setopt() does not accept constant values any more. As it never worked properly,
174 we decided to make the type check stricter. Now, the keys of the array pass must be a string
175 corresponding to the curl constant name.
176 * Function get_users_listing now return list of users except guest and deleted users. Previously
177 deleted users were excluded by get_users_listing. As guest user is not expected while browsing users,
178 and not included in get_user function, it will not be returned by get_users_listing.
179 * The add_* functions in course/dnduploadlib.php have been deprecated. Plugins should be using the
180 MODNAME_dndupload_register callback instead.
181 * The signature of the add() method of classes implementing the parentable_part_of_admin_tree
182 interface (such as admin_category) has been extended. The new parameter allows the caller
183 to prepend the new node before an existing sibling in the admin tree.
184 * condition_info:get_condition_user_fields($formatoptions) now accepts the optional
185 param $formatoptions, that will determine if the field names are processed by
186 format_string() with the passed options.
187 * remove all references to $CFG->gdversion, GD PHP extension is now required
188 * Formslib will now throw a developer warning if a PARAM_ type hasn't been set for elements which
189 need it. Please set PARAM_RAW explicitly if you do not want any cleaning.
190 * Functions responsible for managing and accessing course categories are moved to class coursecat
191 in lib/coursecatlib.php, functions responsible for rendering courses and categories lists are
192 moved to course/renderer.php. The following global functions are deprecated: make_categories_list(),
193 category_delete_move(), category_delete_full(), move_category(), course_category_hide(),
194 course_category_show(), get_course_category(), create_course_category(), get_all_subcategories(),
195 get_child_categories(), get_categories(), print_my_moodle(), print_remote_course(),
196 print_remote_host(), print_whole_category_list(), print_category_info(), get_course_category_tree(),
197 print_courses(), print_course(), get_category_courses_array(), get_category_courses_array_recursively(),
198 get_courses_wmanagers()
199 See http://docs.moodle.org/dev/Courses_lists_upgrade_to_2.5
200 * $core_renderer->block_move_target() changed to support more verbose move-block-here descriptions.
201 * Additional (optional) param $onlyactive has been added to get_enrolled_users, count_enrolled_users
202 functions to get information for only active (excluding suspended enrolments) users. Included two
203 helper functions extract_suspended_users, get_suspended_userids to extract suspended user information.
204 * The plugin_manager class now provides two new helper methods for getting information
205 about known plugins: get_plugins_of_type() and get_subplugins_of_plugin().
206 * The get_uninstall_url() method of all subclasses of plugininfo_base class is now expected
207 to always return moodle_url. Subclasses can use the new method is_uninstall_allowed()
208 to control the availability of the 'Uninstall' link at the Plugins overview page (previously
209 they would do it by get_uninstall_url() returning null). By default, URL to a new general plugin
210 uninstall tool is returned. Unless the plugin type needs extra steps that can't be handled by
211 plugininfo_xxx::uninstall() method or xmldb_xxx_uninstall() function, this default URL should
212 satisfy all plugin types.
214 Database (DML) layer:
215 * $DB->sql_empty() is deprecated, you have to use sql parameters with empty values instead,
216 please note hardcoding of empty strings in SQL queries breaks execution in Oracle database.
217 * Indexes must not be defined on the same columns as keys, this is now reported as fatal problem.
218 Please note that internally we create indexes instead of foreign keys.
221 * M.util.help_icon has been deprecated. Code should be updated to use moodle-core-popuphelp
222 instead. To do so, remove any existing JS calls to M.util.help_icon from your PHP and ensure
223 that your help link is placed in a span which has the class 'helplink'.
227 * Pagelib: Numerous deprecated functions were removed as classes page_base, page_course
228 and page_generic_activity.
229 * use $CFG->googlemapkey3 instead of removed $CFG->googlemapkey and migrate to Google Maps API V3
230 * Function settings_navigation::add_course_editing_links() is completely removed
231 * function global_navigation::format_display_course_content() is removed completely (the
232 functionality is moved to course format class)
233 * in the function global_navigation::load_generic_course_sections() the argument $courseformat is
235 * New component and itemid columns in groups_members table - this allows plugin to create protected
236 group memberships using 'xx_yy_allow_group_member_remove' callback and there is also a new restore
237 callback 'xx_yy_restore_group_member()'.
238 * New general role assignment restore plugin callback 'xx_yy_restore_role_assignment()'.
239 * functions get_generic_section_name(), get_all_sections(), add_mod_to_section(), get_all_mods()
240 are deprecated. See their phpdocs in lib/deprecatedlib.php on how to replace them
243 * moodle-enrol-notification has been renamed to moodle-core-notification
244 * YUI2 code must now use 2in3, see http://yuilibrary.com/yui/docs/yui/yui-yui2.html
245 * M.util.init_select_autosubmit() and M.util.init_url_select() have been deprecated. Code using this should be updated
246 to use moodle-core-formautosubmit
248 Unit testing changes:
249 * output debugging() is not sent to standard output any more,
250 use $this->assertDebuggingCalled(), $this->assertDebuggingNotCalled(),
251 $this->getDebuggingMessages() or $this->assertResetDebugging() instead.
255 Database layer changes:
256 * objects are not allowed in paramters of DML functions, use explicit casting to strings if necessary
259 * DDL and DML methods which were deprecated in 2.0 have now been removed, they will no longer produce
260 debug messages and will produce fatal errors
264 * send_stored_file() has changed its interface
265 * deleted several resourcelib_embed_* functions from resourcelib.php
269 removed unused libraries:
270 * odbc, base32, CodeSniffer, overlib, apd profiling, kses, Smarty, PEAR Console, swfobject, cssshover.htc, md5.js
273 * new admin/tool plugin type
274 * new context API - old API is still available
275 * deleted users do not have context any more
276 * removed global search
282 * basic suport for restore from 1.9
283 * new mobile devices API
290 * new DML API - http://docs.moodle.org/dev/DML_functions
291 * new DDL API - http://docs.moodle.org/dev/DDL_functions
292 * new file API - http://docs.moodle.org/dev/File_API
293 * new $PAGE and $OUTPUT API
295 * new theme API - http://docs.moodle.org/dev/Theme_changes_in_2.0
296 * new javascript API - http://docs.moodle.org/dev/JavaScript_usage_guide
298 * new local plugin type
299 * new translation support - http://lang.moodle.org
300 * new web service API
307 * new backup/restore API
310 * improved plugin support (aka Frankenstyle)
311 * new registration and hub API
312 * new course completion API
315 * new text editor API
316 * new my moodle and profiles API
