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Service Subscribers & Locators

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Sometimes, a service needs access to several other services without being sure that all of them will actually be used. In those cases, you may want the instantiation of the services to be lazy. However, that's not possible using the explicit dependency injection since services are not all meant to be lazy (see Lazy Services).

See also

Another way to inject services lazily is via a service closure.

This can typically be the case in your controllers, where you may inject several services in the constructor, but the action called only uses some of them. Another example are applications that implement the Command pattern using a CommandBus to map command handlers by Command class names and use them to handle their respective command when it is asked for:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

// ...
class CommandBus
{
    /**
     * @param CommandHandler[] $handlerMap
     */
    public function __construct(
        private array $handlerMap,
    ) {
    }

    public function handle(Command $command): mixed
    {
        $commandClass = get_class($command);

        if (!$handler = $this->handlerMap[$commandClass] ?? null) {
            return;
        }

        return $handler->handle($command);
    }
}

// ...
$commandBus->handle(new FooCommand());

Considering that only one command is handled at a time, instantiating all the other command handlers is unnecessary. A possible solution to lazy-load the handlers could be to inject the main dependency injection container.

However, injecting the entire container is discouraged because it gives too broad access to existing services and it hides the actual dependencies of the services. Doing so also requires services to be made public, which isn't the case by default in Symfony applications.

Service Subscribers are intended to solve this problem by giving access to a set of predefined services while instantiating them only when actually needed through a Service Locator, a separate lazy-loaded container.

Defining a Service Subscriber

First, turn CommandBus into an implementation of ServiceSubscriberInterface. Use its getSubscribedServices() method to include as many services as needed in the service subscriber:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use App\CommandHandler\BarHandler;
use App\CommandHandler\FooHandler;
use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceSubscriberInterface;

class CommandBus implements ServiceSubscriberInterface
{
    public function __construct(
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }

    public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
    {
        return [
            'App\FooCommand' => FooHandler::class,
            'App\BarCommand' => BarHandler::class,
        ];
    }

    public function handle(Command $command): mixed
    {
        $commandClass = get_class($command);

        if ($this->locator->has($commandClass)) {
            $handler = $this->locator->get($commandClass);

            return $handler->handle($command);
        }
    }
}

Tip

If the container does not contain the subscribed services, double-check that you have autoconfigure enabled. You can also manually add the container.service_subscriber tag.

A service locator is a PSR-11 container that contains a set of services, but only instantiates them when they are actually used. Consider the following code:

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// ...
$handler = $this->locator->get($commandClass);

return $handler->handle($command);

In this example, the $handler service is only instantiated when the $this->locator->get($commandClass) method is called.

You can also type-hint the service locator argument with ServiceCollectionInterface instead of Psr\Container\ContainerInterface. By doing so, you'll be able to count and iterate over the services of the locator:

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// ...
$numberOfHandlers = count($this->locator);
$nameOfHandlers = array_keys($this->locator->getProvidedServices());

// you can iterate through all services of the locator
foreach ($this->locator as $serviceId => $service) {
    // do something with the service, the service id or both
}

7.1

The ServiceCollectionInterface was introduced in Symfony 7.1.

Including Services

In order to add a new dependency to the service subscriber, use the getSubscribedServices() method to add service types to include in the service locator:

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use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;

public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
{
    return [
        // ...
        LoggerInterface::class,
    ];
}

Service types can also be keyed by a service name for internal use:

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use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;

public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
{
    return [
        // ...
        'logger' => LoggerInterface::class,
    ];
}

When extending a class that also implements ServiceSubscriberInterface, it's your responsibility to call the parent when overriding the method. This typically happens when extending AbstractController:

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use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;
use Symfony\Bundle\FrameworkBundle\Controller\AbstractController;

class MyController extends AbstractController
{
    public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
    {
        return array_merge(parent::getSubscribedServices(), [
            // ...
            'logger' => LoggerInterface::class,
        ]);
    }
}

Optional Services

For optional dependencies, prepend the service type with a ? to prevent errors if there's no matching service found in the service container:

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use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;

public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
{
    return [
        // ...
        '?'.LoggerInterface::class,
    ];
}

Note

Make sure an optional service exists by calling has() on the service locator before calling the service itself.

Aliased Services

By default, autowiring is used to match a service type to a service from the service container. If you don't use autowiring or need to add a non-traditional service as a dependency, use the container.service_subscriber tag to map a service type to a service.

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# config/services.yaml
services:
    App\CommandBus:
        tags:
            - { name: 'container.service_subscriber', key: 'logger', id: 'monolog.logger.event' }

Tip

The key attribute can be omitted if the service name internally is the same as in the service container.

Add Dependency Injection Attributes

As an alternate to aliasing services in your configuration, you can also configure the following dependency injection attributes in the getSubscribedServices() method directly:

This is done by having getSubscribedServices() return an array of SubscribedService objects (these can be combined with standard string[] values):

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use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Autowire;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\TaggedIterator;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\TaggedLocator;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Target;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;

public static function getSubscribedServices(): array
{
    return [
        // ...
        new SubscribedService('logger', LoggerInterface::class, attributes: new Autowire(service: 'monolog.logger.event')),

        // can event use parameters
        new SubscribedService('env', 'string', attributes: new Autowire('%kernel.environment%')),

        // Target
        new SubscribedService('event.logger', LoggerInterface::class, attributes: new Target('eventLogger')),

        // TaggedIterator
        new SubscribedService('loggers', 'iterable', attributes: new TaggedIterator('logger.tag')),

        // TaggedLocator
        new SubscribedService('handlers', ContainerInterface::class, attributes: new TaggedLocator('handler.tag')),
    ];
}

7.1

The TaggedIterator and TaggedLocator attributes were deprecated in Symfony 7.1 in favor of AutowireIterator and AutowireLocator.

Note

The above example requires using 3.2 version or newer of symfony/service-contracts.

The AutowireLocator and AutowireIterator Attributes

Another way to define a service locator is to use the AutowireLocator attribute:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use App\CommandHandler\BarHandler;
use App\CommandHandler\FooHandler;
use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\AutowireLocator;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        #[AutowireLocator([
            FooHandler::class,
            BarHandler::class,
        ])]
        private ContainerInterface $handlers,
    ) {
    }

    public function handle(Command $command): mixed
    {
        $commandClass = get_class($command);

        if ($this->handlers->has($commandClass)) {
            $handler = $this->handlers->get($commandClass);

            return $handler->handle($command);
        }
    }
}

Just like with the getSubscribedServices() method, it is possible to define aliased services thanks to the array keys, as well as optional services, plus you can nest it with SubscribedService attribute:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use App\CommandHandler\BarHandler;
use App\CommandHandler\BazHandler;
use App\CommandHandler\FooHandler;
use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Autowire;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\AutowireLocator;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        #[AutowireLocator([
            'foo' => FooHandler::class,
            'bar' => new SubscribedService(type: 'string', attributes: new Autowire('%some.parameter%')),
            'optionalBaz' => '?'.BazHandler::class,
        ])]
        private ContainerInterface $handlers,
    ) {
    }

    public function handle(Command $command): mixed
    {
        $fooHandler = $this->handlers->get('foo');

        // ...
    }
}

Note

To receive an iterable instead of a service locator, you can switch the AutowireLocator attribute to AutowireIterator attribute.

Defining a Service Locator

To manually define a service locator and inject it to another service, create an argument of type service_locator.

Consider the following CommandBus class where you want to inject some services into it via a service locator:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }
}

Symfony allows you to inject the service locator using YAML/XML/PHP configuration or directly via PHP attributes:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\AutowireLocator;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        // creates a service locator with all the services tagged with 'app.handler'
        #[AutowireLocator('app.handler')]
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }
}

As shown in the previous sections, the constructor of the CommandBus class must type-hint its argument with ContainerInterface. Then, you can get any of the service locator services via their ID (e.g. $this->locator->get('App\FooCommand')).

Reusing a Service Locator in Multiple Services

If you inject the same service locator in several services, it's better to define the service locator as a stand-alone service and then inject it in the other services. To do so, create a new service definition using the ServiceLocator class:

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# config/services.yaml
services:
    app.command_handler_locator:
        class: Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\ServiceLocator
        arguments:
            -
                App\FooCommand: '@app.command_handler.foo'
                App\BarCommand: '@app.command_handler.bar'
        # if you are not using the default service autoconfiguration,
        # add the following tag to the service definition:
        # tags: ['container.service_locator']

Note

The services defined in the service locator argument must include keys, which later become their unique identifiers inside the locator.

Now you can inject the service locator in any other services:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Autowire;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        #[Autowire(service: 'app.command_handler_locator')]
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }
}

Using Service Locators in Compiler Passes

In compiler passes it's recommended to use the register() method to create the service locators. This will save you some boilerplate and will share identical locators among all the services referencing them:

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use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Compiler\ServiceLocatorTagPass;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\ContainerBuilder;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Reference;

public function process(ContainerBuilder $container): void
{
    // ...

    $locateableServices = [
        // ...
        'logger' => new Reference('logger'),
    ];

    $myService = $container->findDefinition(MyService::class);

    $myService->addArgument(ServiceLocatorTagPass::register($container, $locateableServices));
}

Indexing the Collection of Services

By default, services passed to the service locator are indexed using their service IDs. You can change this behavior with two options of the tagged locator (index_by and default_index_method) which can be used independently or combined.

The index_by / indexAttribute Option

This option defines the name of the option/attribute that stores the value used to index the services:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\AutowireLocator;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        #[AutowireLocator('app.handler', indexAttribute: 'key')]
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }
}

In this example, the index_by option is key. All services define that option/attribute, so that will be the value used to index the services. For example, to get the App\Handler\Two service:

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// src/Handler/HandlerCollection.php
namespace App\Handler;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;

class HandlerCollection
{
    public function getHandlerTwo(ContainerInterface $locator): mixed
    {
        // this value is defined in the `key` option of the service
        return $locator->get('handler_two');
    }

    // ...
}

If some service doesn't define the option/attribute configured in index_by, Symfony applies this fallback process:

  1. If the service class defines a static method called getDefault<CamelCase index_by value>Name (in this example, getDefaultKeyName()), call it and use the returned value;
  2. Otherwise, fall back to the default behavior and use the service ID.

The default_index_method Option

This option defines the name of the service class method that will be called to get the value used to index the services:

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// src/CommandBus.php
namespace App;

use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\AutowireLocator;

class CommandBus
{
    public function __construct(
        #[AutowireLocator('app.handler', defaultIndexMethod: 'getLocatorKey')]
        private ContainerInterface $locator,
    ) {
    }
}

If some service class doesn't define the method configured in default_index_method, Symfony will fall back to using the service ID as its index inside the locator.

Combining the index_by and default_index_method Options

You can combine both options in the same locator. Symfony will process them in the following order:

  1. If the service defines the option/attribute configured in index_by, use it;
  2. If the service class defines the method configured in default_index_method, use it;
  3. Otherwise, fall back to using the service ID as its index inside the locator.

Service Subscriber Trait

The ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait provides an implementation for ServiceSubscriberInterface that looks through all methods in your class that are marked with the SubscribedService attribute. It describes the services needed by the class based on each method's return type. The service id is __METHOD__. This allows you to add dependencies to your services based on type-hinted helper methods:

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// src/Service/MyService.php
namespace App\Service;

use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\Routing\RouterInterface;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceSubscriberInterface;

class MyService implements ServiceSubscriberInterface
{
    use ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait;

    public function doSomething(): void
    {
        // $this->router() ...
        // $this->logger() ...
    }

    #[SubscribedService]
    private function router(): RouterInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__METHOD__);
    }

    #[SubscribedService]
    private function logger(): LoggerInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__METHOD__);
    }
}

7.1

The ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait was introduced in Symfony 7.1. In previous Symfony versions it was called ServiceSubscriberTrait.

This allows you to create helper traits like RouterAware, LoggerAware, etc... and compose your services with them:

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// src/Service/LoggerAware.php
namespace App\Service;

use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;

trait LoggerAware
{
    #[SubscribedService]
    private function logger(): LoggerInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__CLASS__.'::'.__FUNCTION__);
    }
}

// src/Service/RouterAware.php
namespace App\Service;

use Symfony\Component\Routing\RouterInterface;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;

trait RouterAware
{
    #[SubscribedService]
    private function router(): RouterInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__CLASS__.'::'.__FUNCTION__);
    }
}

// src/Service/MyService.php
namespace App\Service;

use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceSubscriberInterface;

class MyService implements ServiceSubscriberInterface
{
    use ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait, LoggerAware, RouterAware;

    public function doSomething(): void
    {
        // $this->router() ...
        // $this->logger() ...
    }
}

Caution

When creating these helper traits, the service id cannot be __METHOD__ as this will include the trait name, not the class name. Instead, use __CLASS__.'::'.__FUNCTION__ as the service id.

SubscribedService Attributes

You can use the attributes argument of SubscribedService to add any of the following dependency injection attributes:

Here's an example:

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// src/Service/MyService.php
namespace App\Service;

use Psr\Log\LoggerInterface;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Autowire;
use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\Attribute\Target;
use Symfony\Component\Routing\RouterInterface;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\Attribute\SubscribedService;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceSubscriberInterface;

class MyService implements ServiceSubscriberInterface
{
    use ServiceMethodsSubscriberTrait;

    public function doSomething(): void
    {
        // $this->environment() ...
        // $this->router() ...
        // $this->logger() ...
    }

    #[SubscribedService(attributes: new Autowire('%kernel.environment%'))]
    private function environment(): string
    {
        return $this->container->get(__METHOD__);
    }

    #[SubscribedService(attributes: new Autowire(service: 'router'))]
    private function router(): RouterInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__METHOD__);
    }

    #[SubscribedService(attributes: new Target('requestLogger'))]
    private function logger(): LoggerInterface
    {
        return $this->container->get(__METHOD__);
    }
}

Note

The above example requires using 3.2 version or newer of symfony/service-contracts.

Testing a Service Subscriber

To unit test a service subscriber, you can create a fake container:

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use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceLocatorTrait;
use Symfony\Contracts\Service\ServiceProviderInterface;

// Create the fake services
$foo = new stdClass();
$bar = new stdClass();
$bar->foo = $foo;

// Create the fake container
$container = new class([
    'foo' => fn () => $foo,
    'bar' => fn () => $bar,
]) implements ServiceProviderInterface {
    use ServiceLocatorTrait;
};

// Create the service subscriber
$serviceSubscriber = new MyService($container);
// ...

Note

When defining the service locator like this, beware that the getProvidedServices() of your container will use the return type of the closures as the values of the returned array. If no return type is defined, the value will be ?. If you want the values to reflect the classes of your services, the return type has to be set on your closures.

Another alternative is to mock it using PHPUnit:

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use Psr\Container\ContainerInterface;

$container = $this->createMock(ContainerInterface::class);
$container->expects(self::any())
    ->method('get')
    ->willReturnMap([
        ['foo', $this->createStub(Foo::class)],
        ['bar', $this->createStub(Bar::class)],
    ])
;

$serviceSubscriber = new MyService($container);
// ...
This work, including the code samples, is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-SA 3.0 license.
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