Function hint - possible values for parameters - php

Question

Is it possible to show a user of PhpStorm what the possible function arguments are, not just the type of argument?
For example, I have a function that will show the programmer that two strings are needed, as shown in this graphic:
However, I would like the hint to show the possible values for each variable - tag and tag_type in this example; e.g.,
The possible values for tag are "full, view, edit, add, or delete".
The possible values for variable tag_type is a list of about 10 or so activities in the database.
Here is the code I have. Can it be changed to show the user in PhpStorm what the allowed variable values are?
/**
* #param string $tag
* #param string $tag_type
* #return int
*
* [tag] = full, view, edit, add, or delete
* [type] = all, activities, grades, orders, people, schools, users, team_classes,
* coaches, team_parents, or organization
*
* by default, if leave arguments blank, you are asking if the current user is a full admin,
*/
public function isAdmin(string $tag = '', string $tag_type = ''){
if ($this->isFullAdmin())
return true;
return $this->tagas()
->where('tag', '=', 'full')
->where('tag_type', '=', $tag_type)
->orWhere(function($query) use ($tag, $tag_type) {
$query->where('tag','=',$tag)
->where('tag_type','=', $tag_type);
})->count();
}
Okay, I came up with this, but it doesn't seem to be working. I checked my php version with phpversion() and it is 8.0.2.
public function isAdmin(
#[ExpectedValues(['all', 'activities', 'grades', 'orders', 'people', 'schools', 'users',
'team_classes','coaches', 'team_parents', 'organization'])] string $tag_type = '',
#[ExpectedValues(['*', 'full', 'view', 'edit', 'add', 'delete'])] string $tag = '*'
){
Yet it has only changed the type hinting slightly.
It shows [ExpectedValues] but doesn't show the actual expected values?

Answer 1

You can use PhpStorm Advanced Metadata. In particular: Arguments Accepted by a Method functionality -- https://www.jetbrains.com/help/phpstorm/ide-advanced-metadata.html#expected-arguments.
Make a separate PHP-alike file named .phpstorm.meta.php and place it in the project root. PhpStorm will parse and use the data from this file in appropriate places. Works with any modern PHP version; it is used by Laravel IDE Helper as well as by Symfony plugin to name a few.
<?php
namespace PHPSTORM_META {
expectedArguments(\AUser::isAdmin(), 0, 'full', 'view', 'edit', 'add', 'delete');
}
For PHP 8 you can use custom #[ExpectedValues] PHP attribute made by JetBrains:
https://github.com/JetBrains/phpstorm-attributes#expectedvalues
https://blog.jetbrains.com/phpstorm/2020/12/phpstorm-2020-3-release/#expectedvalues
This way all values are stored together with the method itself and not a separate file.
<?php
declare(strict_types=1);
use JetBrains\PhpStorm\ExpectedValues;
class AUser {
/**
* Bla-bla ...
*
* By default, if leave arguments blank, you are asking if the current user is a full admin.
*
* #param string $tag
* #param string $tag_type
* #return int
*
*/
public function isAdmin(
string $tag = '',
#[ExpectedValues(['all', 'activities', 'grades', 'orders', 'people', 'schools', 'users', 'team_classes', 'coaches', 'team_parents', 'organization'])]
string $tag_type = ''
)
{
if ($this->isFullAdmin()) {
return true;
}
return $this->tagas()
->where('tag', '=', 'full')
->where('tag_type', '=', $tag_type)
->orWhere(function($query) use ($tag, $tag_type) {
$query->where('tag','=',$tag)
->where('tag_type','=', $tag_type);
})->count();
}
}
$user = new AUser();
$user->isAdmin('full', '');
The IDE can also hint you that an unexpected value is used:
NOTE: it's a Weak Warning severity so it's not super visible (you may adjust that in the inspection settings):