Question 404512 in Laravel Question posted in
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How can I load non-related laravel model as relationship?

I have a User and Lesson models. these models are not related to each other.

users table: id, username, password, is_active
lessons table: id, title

User
class User extends Modle
{
    // code 
}

Lesson
class Lessosn extends Modle
{
    public function users()
    {
        // I need to return all users here where is_active=true as RELATIONSHIP
        // return User::where('is_active', true);
    }
}

In the Lesson model I want to have a relationship to load users where (is_active, true)
So I can list all users where is_active = true

Thanks

Tags:

2

Answers


  1. 0

    Since there’s no actual foreign key relationship between Lesson and User, you need to create a custom method instead of a standard Eloquent relationship:

    class Lesson extends Model
{
  public function activeUsers()
  {
    return User::where('is_active', true)->get();
  }
}

    Why It’s Not Recommended:

    Lack of Integrity: Since there’s no real foreign key relationship, you lose referential integrity. Laravel’s built-in relationship methods like hasMany, belongsTo, etc., won’t function as intended.

    Limited Query Builder Features: Standard relationships in Laravel provide you with powerful features like eager loading (with), query constraints on related models, and lazy loading. A custom method like activeUsers doesn’t integrate with these features.

    Maintainability: This approach could lead to confusion for others (or even yourself in the future) who might expect a traditional relationship when they see a method named activeUsers. They might assume it’s a standard relationship method, which it is not.

    Recommended Approach

    Use a Scope or Repository: If the relationship is purely logical and you need to filter users based on a condition like is_active, consider using a query scope in the User model or a repository pattern to handle this logic instead of placing it in the Lesson model.

    Example:

    class User extends Model
{
   public function scopeActive($query)
   {
       return $query->where('is_active', true);
   }
}

    Then, in your controller or service, you can do:

    $activeUsers = User::active()->get();
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  2. 0

    You can append a new property to the Lesson model:

    class Lesson extends Model
{
    protected $appends = ['users'];

    public function getUsersAttribute()
    {
        return User::where('is_active', true)->get();
    }
}

    Now, the users key will be included in all lesson records.

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