Access PHP protected properties - php

Question

Hi there I have a class : AbstractEntityType with a protected property :
abstract class AbstractEntityType extends AbstractType {
protected static $lists = null;
public function __construct($lists = array()) {
AbstractEntityType::$lists = $lists;
}
public function configureOptions(OptionsResolver $resolver) {
$resolver->setRequired(array(
'temp', 'statut'
));
}
}
Here is another class extending the previous one :
class MyType extends AbstractEntityType {
....
}
I use a factory to create MyType class:
class SimpleFormTypeFactory {
public function createType($entity_type, $entity_stub, $lists = null) {
$type = null;
switch($entity_type) {
....
case SOMENUMTYP:
$type = new MyType($lists);
break;
}
}
I tested it locally with php 5.4 and windows with no problem but on the server (linux and php 5.3) I have this error :
Error: Cannot access protected property MyType::$lists
What is going on ? a php bug ?
Thank you

Answer 1

The property is protected, so you can never do this:
public function __construct($lists = array()) {
AbstractEntityType::$lists = $lists;
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Not allowed for a protected property, regardless where you are
}
However, when you are inside your class, you can access it directly:
public function __construct($lists = array()) {
self::$lists = $lists;
}