# classy_enum

[![Build Status](https://secure.travis-ci.org/beerlington/classy_enum.png?branch=master)](http://travis-ci.org/beerlington/classy_enum)

ClassyEnum is a Ruby on Rails gem that adds class-based enumerator functionality to ActiveRecord attributes.

## Rails & Ruby Versions Supported

*Rails:*

  * 3.0.x - 3.2.x: Fully tested in a production application.
  * 2.3.x: If you need support for Rails 2.3.x, please install [version 0.9.1](https://rubygems.org/gems/classy_enum/versions/0.9.1)

*Ruby:* Ruby 1.8.7, 1.9.2, and 1.9.3 are tested and supported

## Installation

The gem is hosted at [rubygems.org](https://rubygems.org/gems/classy_enum)

You will also need to add `app/enums` as an autoloadable path. This configuration will depend on which version of rails you are using.

## Upgrading to 2.0

Prior to 2.0, enum classes were implicity defined and were only required
when overriding methods or properties. As of 2.0, all enum classes must
explicity subclass a child of ClassyEnum::Base. If you used the
generator, there are no changes to the existing structure.

Built-in Formtastic support has been removed. See the note at the
bottom of this readme for more information how how to enable it.

## Example Usage

The most common use for ClassyEnum is to replace database lookup tables where the content and behavior is mostly static and has multiple "types". In this example, I have an ActiveRecord model called `Alarm` with an attribute called `priority`. Priority is stored as a string (VARCHAR) type in the database and is converted to an enum value when requested.

### 1. Generate the Enum

The fastest way to get up and running with ClassyEnum is to use the built-in Rails generator like so:

```
rails g classy_enum Priority low medium high
```

A new enum template file will be created at app/enums/priority.rb that will look like:

```ruby
class Priority < ClassyEnum::Base
  enum_classes :low, :medium, :high
end

class PriorityLow < Priority
end

class PriorityMedium < Priority
end

class PriorityHigh < Priority
end
```

The `enum_classes` class macro will define the enum member order as well as additional ClassyEnum behavior, which is described further down in this document.

### 2. Customize the Enum

The generator creates a default setup, but each enum member can be changed to fit your needs.

I have defined three priority levels: low, medium, and high. Each priority level can have different properties and methods associated with it.

I would like to add a method called `send_email?` that all member subclasses respond to. By default this method will return false, but will be overridden for high priority alarms to return true.

```ruby
class Priority < ClassyEnum::Base
  enum_classes :low, :medium, :high

  def send_email?
    false
  end
end

class PriorityLow < Priority
end

class PriorityMedium < Priority
end

class PriorityHigh < Priority
  def send_email?
    true
  end
end
```

### 3. Setup the ActiveRecord model

My ActiveRecord Alarm model needs a text field that will store a string representing the enum member. An example model schema might look something like:

```ruby
create_table "alarms", :force => true do |t|
  t.string   "priority"
  t.boolean  "enabled"
end
```

Note: Alternatively, you may use an enum type if your database supports it. See
[this issue](https://github.com/beerlington/classy_enum/issues/12) for more information.

Then in my model I've added a line that calls `classy_enum_attr` with a single argument representing the enum I want to associate with my model. I am also delegating the send_email? method to my Priority enum class.

```ruby
class Alarm < ActiveRecord::Base
  classy_enum_attr :priority

  delegate :send_email?, :to => :priority
end
```

With this setup, I can now do the following:

```ruby
@alarm = Alarm.create(:priority => :medium)

@alarm.priority  # => PriorityMedium
@alarm.priority.medium? # => true
@alarm.priority.high? # => false
@alarm.priority.to_s # => 'medium'
@alarm.priority.name # => 'Medium'

# Should this alarm send an email?
@alarm.send_email? # => false
@alarm.priority = :high
@alarm.send_email? # => true
```

The enum field works like any other model attribute. It can be mass-assigned using `update_attribute(s)`.

## Back reference to owning object

In some cases you may want an enum class to reference the owning object
(an instance of the active record model). Think of it as a `belongs_to`
relationship, where the enum can reference its owning object.

By default, the back reference can be called using `owner`.
If you want to refer to the owner by a different name, you must explicitly declare
the owner name in the classy_enum parent class using the `owner` class method.

Example using the default `owner` method:

```ruby
class Priority < ClassyEnum::Base
  enum_classes :low, :medium, :high
end

...
# low and medium subclasses omitted
...

class PriorityHigh < Priority
  def send_email?
    owner.enabled?
  end
end
```

Example where the owner reference is explicitly declared:

```ruby
class Priority < ClassyEnum::Base
  enum_classes :low, :medium, :high
  owner :alarm
end

...
# low and medium subclasses omitted
...

class PriorityHigh < Priority
  def send_email?
    alarm.enabled?
  end
end
```

In the above examples, high priority alarms are only emailed if the owning alarm is enabled.

```ruby
@alarm = Alarm.create(:priority => :high, :enabled => true)

# Should this alarm send an email?
@alarm.send_email? # => true
@alarm.enabled = false
@alarm.send_email? # => false
```

## Serializing as JSON

By default, the enum will be serialized as a string representing the value:

```ruby
@alarm = Alarm.create(:priority => :high, :enabled => true)
@alarm.to_json.should == "{\"alarm\":{\"priority\":\"high\"}}"
```

This behavior can be overridden by using the `:serialize_as_json => true` option in your ActiveRecord model:

```ruby
class Alarm < ActiveRecord::Base
  classy_enum_attr :priority, :serialize_as_json => true
end

@alarm = Alarm.create(:priority => :high, :enabled => true)
@alarm.to_json.should == "{\"alarm\":{\"priority\":{}}}"
```

## Special Cases

What if your enum class name is not the same as your model's attribute name? No problem! Just use a second arugment in `classy_enum_attr` to declare the attribute name. In this case, the model's attribute is called *alarm_priority*.

```ruby
class Alarm < ActiveRecord::Base
  classy_enum_attr :alarm_priority, :enum => :priority
end

@alarm = Alarm.create(:alarm_priority => :medium)
@alarm.alarm_priority  # => PriorityMedium
```

If you would like the default getter method to return a string, you can
use the optional *:suffix* option for the enum getter:

```ruby
class Alarm < ActiveRecord::Base
  classy_enum_attr :priority, :suffix => 'type'
end

alarm = Alarm.create(:priority => :high)
alarm.priority # => 'high'
alarm.priority_type # instance of PriorityHigh enum
```

## Model Validation

An ActiveRecord validator `validates_inclusion_of :field, :in => ENUM.all` is automatically added to your model when you use `classy_enum_attr`. 

If your enum only has members low, medium, and high, then the following validation behavior would be expected:

```ruby
@alarm = Alarm.new(:priority => :really_high)
@alarm.valid? # => false
@alarm.priority = :high
@alarm.valid? # => true
```

To allow nil or blank values, you can pass in `:allow_nil` and `:allow_blank` as options to `classy_enum_attr`:

```ruby
class Alarm < ActiveRecord::Base
  classy_enum_attr :priority, :allow_nil => true
end

@alarm = Alarm.new(:priority => nil)
@alarm.valid? # => true
```

## Working with ClassyEnum outside of ActiveRecord

While ClassyEnum was designed to be used directly with ActiveRecord, it can also be used outside of it. Here are some examples based on the enum class defined earlier in this document.

Instantiate an enum member subclass *PriorityLow*

```ruby
# These statements are all equivalent
low = Priority.build(:low)
low = Priority.build('low')
low = Priority.find(:low)
low = PriorityLow.new
```

Get a list of the valid enum options

```ruby
Priority.valid_options # => low, medium, high
```

## Formtastic Support

Built-in Formtastic support has been removed as of 2.0. It is still
available but needs to be enabled manually. To enable support visit
[the wiki](https://github.com/beerlington/classy_enum/wiki/Formtastic-Support)

Then in your Formtastic view forms, use this syntax: `<%= f.input :priority, :as => :enum_select %>`

Note: ClassyEnum respects the `:allow_blank` and `:allow_nil` options and will include a blank select option in these cases

## Copyright

Copyright (c) 2012 [Peter Brown](https://github.com/beerlington). See LICENSE for details.