Database Reference

LavaLust includes a Database class that supports both semi-traditional SQL usage and a Query Builder pattern, allowing you to write safe and readable database code.

Database Configuration

Database connection values live in:

app/config/database.php

Example configuration group:

<?php

$database['main'] = [
    'driver'    => 'mysqli',
    'hostname'  => 'localhost',
    'port'      => '3306',
    'username'  => 'root',
    'password'  => '',
    'database'  => 'my_database',
    'charset'   => 'utf8mb4',
    'dbprefix'  => '',
];

Configuration values

driver: The database driver/type (for example mysqli, postgre, odbc). Must be specified in lowercase.
hostname: Hostname of the database server (commonly localhost).
port: The database port number (optional; e.g. 3306 for MySQL).
username: The username used to connect to the database.
password: The password used to connect to the database.
database: The name of the database to connect to.
dbprefix: Optional table prefix that Query Builder will prepend to table names. Useful when multiple apps share the same DB.
charset: Character set used by the connection (e.g. utf8mb4).

Connecting to your database

There are two main ways to initialize the database class: auto-connect and manual connect.

Automatically connecting

To auto-load the database on every request, add 'database' to the libraries array in:

app/config/autoload.php

<?php
$autoload['libraries'] = ['database'];

This will instantiate the DB class for every request.

Manually connecting

When only some pages need DB access, connect manually where needed:

$this->call->database();

With no argument this connects to the default group from your config and assigns the instance to $this->db.

Connecting to a specific group

To connect to a specific group defined in your database config:

$this->call->database('group_name');

That instance will be assigned to $this->group_name.

Connecting to multiple databases

You can open multiple database connections in the same request:

$this->call->database();               # assigned to $this->db (default)
$this->call->database('group_one');    # assigned to $this->group_one
$this->call->database('group_two');    # assigned to $this->group_two

Note

Replace group_one/group_two with the actual group names defined in your config. If you omit a group name the instance is assigned to $this->db.

Using multiple database instances

After connecting, query each instance like so:

$this->db->table('users')->get_all();
$this->group_one->table('posts')->get_all();
$this->group_two->table('comments')->get_all();

Best practices

Keep DB credentials out of version control (use environment variables if possible).
Use the Query Builder for safer and readable queries.
Wrap DB access inside models for a clean separation of concerns.
Use multiple database connections only when necessary.