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对象比较

PHP5中的对象比较（object comparison）要比PHP4中复杂，也比其它一般的面向对象语言复杂。

当使用对比操作符(==)比较两个对象变量时，比较的原则是：如果两个对象的属性和属性值 都相等，而且两个对象是同一个类的实例，那么这两个对象变量相等。

而如果使用全等操作符(===)，这两个对象变量一定要指向某个类的同一个实例（即同一个对象）。

通过下面的示例你可以理解以上原则。

Example #1 PHP 5的对象比较

<?php
function bool2str($bool)
{
    if ($bool === false) {
        return 'FALSE';
    } else {
        return 'TRUE';
    }
}

function compareObjects(&$o1, &$o2)
{
    echo 'o1 == o2 : ' . bool2str($o1 == $o2) . "\n";
    echo 'o1 != o2 : ' . bool2str($o1 != $o2) . "\n";
    echo 'o1 === o2 : ' . bool2str($o1 === $o2) . "\n";
    echo 'o1 !== o2 : ' . bool2str($o1 !== $o2) . "\n";
}

class Flag
{
    public $flag;

    function Flag($flag = true) {
        $this->flag = $flag;
    }
}

class OtherFlag
{
    public $flag;

    function OtherFlag($flag = true) {
        $this->flag = $flag;
    }
}

$o = new Flag();
$p = new Flag();
$q = $o;
$r = new OtherFlag();

echo "Two instances of the same class\n";
compareObjects($o, $p);

echo "\nTwo references to the same instance\n";
compareObjects($o, $q);

echo "\nInstances of two different classes\n";
compareObjects($o, $r);
?>

以上例程会输出：

Two instances of the same class
o1 == o2 : TRUE
o1 != o2 : FALSE
o1 === o2 : FALSE
o1 !== o2 : TRUE

Two references to the same instance
o1 == o2 : TRUE
o1 != o2 : FALSE
o1 === o2 : TRUE
o1 !== o2 : FALSE

Instances of two different classes
o1 == o2 : FALSE
o1 != o2 : TRUE
o1 === o2 : FALSE
o1 !== o2 : TRUE

Note:

PHP扩展中可以自行定义对象比较的原则。

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PHP手册 - N: 对象比较

用户评论:

f at francislacroix dot info (18-Nov-2011 07:36)

It should be noted that objects can be compared using only their accessible properties using get_object_vars().

Per example, in this class:

class X {
    public $a;
    private $b;
    public function __construct($a, $b) {
        $this->a = $a;
        $this->b = $b;
    }
}

You can ignore the private properties when comparing them outside the class scope, like this:

$a = new X(1, 1);
$b = new X(1, 0);
var_dump(get_object_vars($a) == get_object_vars($b));

Just remember that get_object_vars() return different properties depending on the scope where you call it, so calling the above within one of X member will compare the private properties.

d dot e dot pope at gmail dot com (27-Mar-2011 08:27)

Note that ALL object fields, public and private, are used in the equivalence check.  If you want public-only equivalence you'll have to roll your own.

<?php

function bool2str($bool)
{
    if ($bool === false) {
        return 'FALSE';
    } else {
        return 'TRUE';
    }
}

class PubPrivFlag
{
    public $pubFlag;
    private $privFlag;

    public function __construct($pub, $priv)
    {
        $this->pubFlag = $pub;
        $this->privFlag = $priv;
    }
}

echo "Two instances of the same class with identical private fields\n";
$s = new PubPrivFlag(true, true);
$t = new PubPrivFlag(true, true);
echo 'o1 == o2 : ' . bool2str($s == $t) . "\n";

echo "Two instances of the same class with different private fields\n";
$s = new PubPrivFlag(true, true);
$t = new PubPrivFlag(true, false);
echo 'o1 == o2 : ' . bool2str($s == $t) . "\n";
?>

This will output the following:

Two instances of the same class with identical private fields
o1 == o2 : TRUE
Two instances of the same class with different private fields
o1 == o2 : FALSE

SjH (02-Feb-2011 12:15)

Interestingly enough due to the operator precidences changing the values of identical objects may not be as obvious as expected.

<?php
class A {

    private $val;

    public function set($val)
    {
        $this->val = $val;

        return $this;
     }

}

$a = new A;
$b = new A;
$c = $a;

echo var_dump($a->set('foo') == $b->set('bar'));
// Will evaluate as boolean false

echo var_dump($a->set('foo') == $c->set('bar'));
// Will evaluate a boolean true
?>

Anonymous (02-Jul-2010 05:00)

Comparison using <> operators should be documented.  Between two objects, at least in PHP5.3, the comparison operation stops and returns at the first unequal property found.

<?php

$o1 = new stdClass();
$o1->prop1 = 'c';
$o1->prop2 = 25;
$o1->prop3 = 201;
$o1->prop4 = 1000;

$o2 = new stdClass();
$o2->prop1 = 'c';
$o2->prop2 = 25;
$o2->prop3 = 200;
$o2->prop4 = 9999;

echo (int)($o1 < $o2); // 0
echo (int)($o1 > $o2); // 1

$o1->prop3 = 200;

echo (int)($o1 < $o2); // 1
echo (int)($o1 > $o2); // 0

?>

RPaseur at NationalPres dot org (09-Oct-2009 12:09)

SimpleXML Objects are different, even if made from the same XML.

<?php // RAY_SimpleXML_compare.php
error_reporting(E_ALL);
echo "<pre>\n";

// TWO SimpleXML OBJECTS ARE NOT EQUAL WITH COMPARISON OPERATORS.  PHP 5.2.10

// AN XML STRING
$xml = '<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<thing>
  <number>123456</number>
  <email>user@example.com</email>
  <state>CA</state>
</thing>';

// SHOW THE XML STRING
echo htmlentities($xml);

// MAKE TWO OBJECTS
$obj1 = SimpleXML_Load_String($xml);
$obj2 = SimpleXML_Load_String($xml);

// COMPARE OBJECTS AND FIND THAT THIS ECHOS NOTHING AT ALL
if ($obj1 === $obj2) echo "\n\nOBJECTS IDENTICAL ";
if ($obj1 ==  $obj2) echo "\n\nOBJECTS EQUAL ";

// SHOW THE OBJECTS - NOTE DIFFERENT SimpleXMLElement NUMBERS
echo "\n\n";
var_dump($obj1);
var_dump($obj2);

// ITERATE OVER THE OBJECTS
foreach ($obj1 as $key => $val1)
{
    $val2 = $obj2->$key;
    var_dump($val1);
    var_dump($val2);
    if ($val1 == $val2) echo "\n\nOBJECTS EQUAL"; // ECHOS NOTHING

// RECAST AS STRINGS AND COMPARE AGAIN
    $val1 = (string)$val1;
    $val2 = (string)$val2;
    if ($val1 === $val2) echo "STRINGS IDENTICAL: $key => $val1 \n\n"; // CONMPARISON SHOWS STRINGS IDENTICAL
}
?>

Hayley Watson (16-Sep-2008 11:33)

This has already been mentioned (see jazfresh at hotmail.com's note), but here it is again in more detail because for objects the difference between == and === is significant.

Loose equality (==) over objects is recursive: if the properties of the two objects being compared are themselves objects, then those properties will also be compared using ==.

<?php
class Link
{
    public $link; function __construct($link) { $this->link = $link; }
}
class Leaf
{
    public $leaf; function __construct($leaf) { $this->leaf = $leaf; }
}

$leaf1 = new Leaf(42);
$leaf2 = new Leaf(42);

$link1 = new Link($leaf1);
$link2 = new Link($leaf2);

echo "Comparing Leaf object equivalence: is \$leaf1==\$leaf2? ", ($leaf1 == $leaf2  ? "Yes" : "No"), "\n";
echo "Comparing Leaf object identity: is \$leaf1===\$leaf2? ",   ($leaf1 === $leaf2 ? "Yes" : "No"), "\n";
echo "\n";
echo "Comparing Link object equivalence: is \$link1==\$link2? ",($link1 == $link2  ? "Yes" : "No"), "\n";
echo "Comparing Link object identity: is \$link1===\$link2? ",  ($link1 === $link2 ? "Yes" : "No"), "\n";
?>

Even though $link1 and $link2 contain different Leaf objects, they are still equivalent because the Leaf objects are themselves equivalent.

The practical upshot is that using "==" when "===" would be more appropriate can result in a severe performance penalty, especially if the objects are large and/or complex. In fact, if there are any circular relationships involved between the objects or (recursively) any of their properties, then a fatal error can result because of the implied infinite loop.

<?php
class Foo { public $foo; }
$t = new Foo; $t->foo = $t;
$g = new Foo; $g->foo = $g;

echo "Strict identity:   ", ($t===$g ? "True" : "False"),"\n";
echo "Loose equivalence: ", ($t==$g  ? "True" : "False"), "\n";
?>

So preference should be given to comparing objects with "===" rather than "=="; if two distinct objects are to be compared for equivalence, try to do so by examining suitable individual properties. (Maybe PHP could get a magic "__equals" method that gets used to evaluate "=="? :) )

wbcarts at juno dot com (08-Sep-2008 09:36)

COMPARING OBJECTS using PHP's usort() method.

PHP and MySQL both provide ways to sort your data already, and it is a good idea to use that if possible. However, since this section is on comparing your own PHP objects (and that you may need to alter the sorting method in PHP), here is an example of how you can do that using PHP's "user-defined" sort method, usort() and your own class compare() methods.

<?php

/*
 * Employee.php
 *
 * This class defines a compare() method, which tells PHP the sorting rules
 * for this object - which is to sort by emp_id.
 *
 */
class Employee
{
    public $first;
    public $last;
    public $emp_id;     // the property we're interested in...

    public function __construct($emp_first, $emp_last, $emp_ID)
    {
        $this->first = $emp_first;
        $this->last = $emp_last;
        $this->emp_id = $emp_ID;
    }

    /*
     * define the rules for sorting this object - using emp_id.
     * Make sure this function returns a -1, 0, or 1.
     */
    public static function compare($a, $b)
    {
        if ($a->emp_id < $b->emp_id) return -1;
        else if($a->emp_id == $b->emp_id) return 0;
        else return 1;
    }

    public function __toString()
    {
        return "Employee[first=$this->first, last=$this->last, emp_id=$this->emp_id]";
    }
}

# create a PHP array and initialize it with Employee objects.
$employees = array(
  new Employee("John", "Smith", 345),
  new Employee("Jane", "Doe", 231),
  new Employee("Mike", "Barnes", 522),
  new Employee("Vicky", "Jones", 107),
  new Employee("John", "Doe", 2),
  new Employee("Kevin", "Patterson", 89)
);

# sort the $employees array using Employee compare() method.
usort($employees, array("Employee", "compare"));

# print the results
foreach($employees as $employee)
{
  echo $employee . '<br>';
}
?>

Results are now sorted by emp_id:

Employee[first=John, last=Doe, emp_id=2]
Employee[first=Kevin, last=Patterson, emp_id=89]
Employee[first=Vicky, last=Jones, emp_id=107]
Employee[first=Jane, last=Doe, emp_id=231]
Employee[first=John, last=Smith, emp_id=345]
Employee[first=Mike, last=Barnes, emp_id=522]

Important Note: Your PHP code will never directly call the Employee's compare() method, but PHP's usort() calls it many many times. Also, when defining the rules for sorting, make sure to get to a "primitive type" level... that is, down to a number or string, and that the function returns a -1, 0, or 1, for reliable and consistent results.

Also see: http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.usort.php for more examples of PHP's sorting facilities.

wbcarts at juno dot com (06-Sep-2008 10:02)

COMPARISONS AND EQUALITY are NOT the same

I'm not sure that the PHP Example #1 above is clear enough. In my own experience, I have found there is a distinct difference between a "comparison" and a "test for equality". The difference is found in the possible return values of the function being used, for example.

/*
 * Test two values for EQUALITY - returns (boolean) TRUE or FALSE.
 */
function equals($a, $b)
{
  return ($a == $b);
}

/*
 * COMPARE two values - returns (int) -1, 0, or 1.
 */
function compare($a, $b)
{
  if($a < $b) return -1;
  else if($a == $b) return 0;
  else if($a > $b) return 1;
  else return -1;
}

My examples clarify the difference between "making a comparison" and "testing for equality". You can substitute any of the "==" with "===" for example, but the point is on the possible return values of the function. All tests for EQUALITY will return TRUE or FALSE, and a COMPARISON will give a "<", "==", or ">" answers... which you can then use for sorting.

cross+php at distal dot com (05-Mar-2008 04:50)

In response to "rune at zedeler dot dk"s comment about class contents being equal, I have a similar issue.  I want to sort an array of objects using sort().

I know I can do it with usort(), but I'm used to C++ where you can define operators that allow comparison.  I see in the zend source code that it calls a compare_objects function, but I don't see any way to implement that function for an object.  Would it have to be an extension to provide that interface?

If so, I'd like to suggest that you allow equivalence and/or comparison operations to be defined in a class definition in PHP.  Then, the sorts of things rune and I want to do would be much easier.

dionyziz at deviantart dot com (11-Mar-2007 03:20)

Note that classes deriving from the same parent aren't considered equal when comparing even using ==; they should also be objects of the same child class.

<?php
    class Mom {
        private $mAttribute;
       
        public function Mom( $attribute ) {
            $this->mAttribute = $attribute;
        }
        public function Attribute() {
             return $this->mAttribute;
        }
    }
   
    final class Sister extends Mom {
        public function Sister( $attribute ) {
            $this->Mom( $attribute );
        }
    }
   
    final class Brother extends Mom {
        public function Brother( $attribute ) {
            $this->Mom( $attribute );
        }
    }
   
    $sister = new Sister( 5 );
    $brother = new Brother( 5 );
   
    assert( $sister == $brother ); // will FAIL!
?>

This assertion will fail, because sister and brother are not of the same child class!

If you want to compare based on the parent class object type only, you might have to define a function for comparisons like these, and use it instead of the == operator:

<?php
    function SiblingsEqual( $a, $b ) {
        if ( !( $a instanceof Mom ) ) {
            return false;
        }
        if ( !( $b instanceof Mom ) ) {
            return false;
        }
        if ( $a->Attribute() != $b->Attribute() ) {
            return false;
        }
        return true;
    }

    assert( SiblingsEqual( $sister, $brother ) ); // will succeed
?>

rune at zedeler dot dk (28-Feb-2007 04:34)

Whoops, apparently I hadn't checked the array-part of the below very well.
Forgot to test if the arrays had same length, and had some misaligned parenthesis.
This one should work better :+)

<?
function deepCompare($a,$b) {
  if(is_object($a) && is_object($b)) {
    if(get_class($a)!=get_class($b))
      return false;
    foreach($a as $key => $val) {
      if(!deepCompare($val,$b->$key))
        return false;
    }
    return true;
  }
  else if(is_array($a) && is_array($b)) {
    while(!is_null(key($a)) && !is_null(key($b))) {
      if (key($a)!==key($b) || !deepCompare(current($a),current($b)))
        return false;
      next($a); next($b);
    }
    return is_null(key($a)) && is_null(key($b));
  }
  else
    return $a===$b;
}
?>

rune at zedeler dot dk (28-Feb-2007 04:27)

I haven't found a build-in function to check whether two obects are identical - that is, all their fields are identical.
In other words,

<?
class A {
  var $x;
  function __construct($x) { $this->x = $x; }

}
$identical1 = new A(42);
$identical2 = new A(42);
$different = new A('42');
?>

Comparing the objects with "==" will claim that all three of them are equal. Comparing with "===" will claim that all are un-equal.
I have found no build-in function to check that the two identicals are
identical, but not identical to the different.

The following function does that:

<?
function deepCompare($a,$b) {
  if(is_object($a) && is_object($b)) {
    if(get_class($a)!=get_class($b))
      return false;
    foreach($a as $key => $val) {
      if(!deepCompare($val,$b->$key))
    return false;
    }
    return true;
  }
  else if(is_array($a) && is_array($b)) {
    while(!is_null(key($a) && !is_null(key($b)))) {
      if (key($a)!==key($b) || !deepCompare(current($a),current($b)))
    return false;
      next($a); next($b);
    }
    return true;
  }
  else
    return $a===$b;
}
?>

jazfresh at hotmail.com (08-Dec-2006 10:36)

Note that when comparing object attributes, the comparison is recursive (at least, it is with PHP 5.2). That is, if $a->x contains an object then that will be compared with $b->x in the same manner. Be aware that this can lead to recursion errors:
<?php
class Foo {
    public $x;
}
$a = new Foo();
$b = new Foo();
$a->x = $b;
$b->x = $a;

print_r($a == $b);
?>
Results in:
PHP Fatal error:  Nesting level too deep - recursive dependency? in test.php on line 11