php __set() overloaded method unexpected behavior

Question

I have:

class Address {
    private $number;
    private $street;

    public function __construct( $maybenumber, $maybestreet = null ) {
        if( is_null( $maybestreet) ) {
            $this->streetaddress = $maybenumber;
        } else {
            $this->number = $maybenumber;
            $this->street = $maybestreet;
        }
    }

    public function __set( $property, $value ) {
        if( $property === "streetaddress" ) {
            if( preg_match( "/^(\d+.*?)[\s,]+(.+)$/", $value, $matches ) ) {
                $this->number = $matches[1];
                $this->street = $matches[2];
            } else {
                throw new Exception( "unable to parse street address: '{$value}'" );
            }
        }
    }

    public function __get( $property ) {
        if( $property === "streetaddress" ) {
            return $this->number . " " . $this->street;
        }
    }
}

$address = new Address( "441b Bakers Street" );
echo "<pre>";
print_r($GLOBALS);
echo "</pre>";

Outputs:

 ...

[address] => Address Object
        (
            [number:Address:private] => 441b
            [street:Address:private] => Bakers Street
        )

How is it that the __set method was invoked and the properties $number and $street set as shown when the __set method wasn't even called from nowhere?

My normal logic tells me that when the instantiation took place all that would've happened was that a property streetaddress would be created with the value passed to the $maybenumber parameter since the second argument, $maybestreet was null.

Any explanations as to this behavior would be helpful and links to official documentation would be good also.

add debug_print_backtrace(); to __set and look at results )... Address->__set(streetaddress, 441b Bakers Street) called at [... — Cheery
– Cheery, Commented Sep 25, 2014 at 1:15

Weltschmerz · Accepted Answer · 2014-09-25 01:15:18Z

2

Your object doesn't have streetaddress property that's why the magic method __set is called when you try to set it $this->streetaddress = $maybenumber;.

Magic methods: http://php.net/manual/en/language.oop5.magic.php

answered Sep 25, 2014 at 1:15

Weltschmerz

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1 Comment

Robert Over a year ago

Hmm ok. Lets say I had not defined the __set method. Then the property $streetaddress would've been automatically created and set? is this how the default __set method works?

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