Doctrine2 default timestamp wtih "0000-00-00 00:00:00" format? - php

Question

I am using Doctrine2 ORM. I have an order table.
Name | Type | Attributes | Null | Default
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
order_id | int | | No | None
date_created | timestamp | | No | CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
date_edited | timestamp | on update CURRENT_TIMESTAMP | No | CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
date_sent | timestamp | | No | 0000-00-00 00:00:00
date_cancelled | timestamp | | No | 0000-00-00 00:00:00
requested_ship_date | timestamp | | No | 0000-00-00 00:00:00
I have added the Timestampable Doctrine Extension to use for the date_created and date_edited fields like so:
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #Gedmo\Timestampable(on="create")
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime")
*/
private $date_created;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #Gedmo\Timestampable(on="update")
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime")
*/
private $date_edited;
However, I'm not sure what to do for date_sent and date_cancelled. I want them both to default to 0000-00-00 00:00:00 instead of the current time. I saw this workaround for using timestamps in Doctrine2 without a plugin, but I don't want the default to be the current timestamp for these. The reason being, users can 'save' an order but not 'send' it to someone. Also, I obviously don't want the date_cancelled to be the current timestamp.
Note: I don't want to store nulls in the database, so please don't suggest that.
Thanks in advance.
Update
I currently have this for the three remaining fields in my Order entity.
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime", options={"default":"0000-00-00 00:00:00"})
* #ORM\Version
*/
private $date_sent;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime", options={"default":"0000-00-00 00:00:00"})
* #ORM\Version
*/
private $date_cancelled;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime", options={"default":"0000-00-00 00:00:00"})
* #ORM\Version
*/
private $requested_ship_date;
For some reason, when I try to update the requested_ship_date field, it ends up being "0000-00-00 00:00:00". I leave the date_sent and date_cancelled fields null and they update to my local time, not UTC time. However, the date_created and date_edited fields will be updated to the current time in UTC time (how I want it).
Basically, when I'm saving an order it looks like the first row, but I want it to look like the second row (assuming the user requested a ship date of 2015-06-08).
order_id | date_created | date_edited | date_sent | date_cancelled | requested_ship_date
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 | 2015-06-05 12:00:00 | 2015-06-05 12:00:00 | 2015-06-05 07:00:00 | 2015-06-05 07:00:00 | 0000-00-00 00:00:00
1 | 2015-06-05 12:00:00 | 2015-06-05 12:00:00 | 0000-00-00 00:00:00 | 0000-00-00 00:00:00 | 2015-06-08 00:00:00
I have set the timezone in my index.php file like so date_default_timezone_set('Zulu');. I don't reset the timezone anywhere else.

Answer 1

Okay, I found a crazy workaround for this, but I honestly couldn't find a better solution. So, for anyone else stuck in the same mess I am, you're welcome lol.
First, the rules:
date_created = updated only on creation
date_edited = updated on every update
date_sent = updated when user clicks "submit" instead of "save"
date_cancelled = updated when user decides to cancel the order
requested_ship_date = required when creating a new order, this is the date the customer wants the order to be shipped by.
Some code from my Order entity.
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime")
* #Gedmo\Timestampable(on="create")
*/
private $date_created;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime")
* #Gedmo\Timestampable(on="update")
*/
private $date_edited;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime", options={"default":"0000-00-00 00:00:00"})
*/
private $date_sent;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime", options={"default":"0000-00-00 00:00:00"})
*/
private $date_cancelled;
/**
* #var \DateTime
*
* #ORM\Column(type="datetime")
* #Gedmo\Timestampable(on="change", field="requested_ship_date")
*/
private $requested_ship_date;
/*
* Constructor
*/
public function __construct()
{
if (!$this->date_sent) $this->date_sent = new DateTime("0000-00-00 00:00:00", new DateTimeZone("Zulu"));
if (!$this->date_cancelled) $this->date_cancelled = new DateTime("0000-00-00 00:00:00", new DateTimeZone("Zulu"));
}
/**
* Updates time sent
*
* #return Order
*/
public function send()
{
$this->date_sent = new DateTime("now");
return $this;
}
/**
* Updates time cancelled
*
* #return Order
*/
public function cancel()
{
$this->date_cancelled = new DateTime("now");
return $this;
}
Explanation:
I did not change anything of how I set up my database columns in my order table. I tried using the #Gedmo\Timestampable plugin for my date_sent and date_cancelled fields, but couldn't get it to work. I noticed that the timezones were off, for some weird reason, so I manually set them in the constructor. It is important to not automatically set it, or you will override values previously set. For some reason unknown to me, I couldn't get the requested_ship_date field working without using the #Gedmo\Timestampable plugin. If I took it out, every set up I tried to use with Doctrines type="datetime" would just result in the column equaling 0000-00-00 00:00:00.
If anybody has any questions, let me know. I had to basically poke at things for awhile until I figured it out. The date_sent and date_cancelled fields worked correctly, and were in the right timezone when I updated them.