Architecture
Table of contents
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Architecture
PrestaShop uses Model-View-Controller (MVC) for its software architecture, which is often used in web applications where webpages are dynamically generated. MVC isolates application logic from the input and presentation, so that they can be separately developed, tested and maintained. A view provides the user interface presented to the customer in the browser. A controller receives input from the browser, decides what to do with it and then passes information to models that carry out specific tasks. In PrestaShop, the models are in the /classes directory, the views are in the /themes directory and the controllers are in the /controllers directory. The files in the root directory are the public interface used to call the controllers.
All these files have a warning at the top of them telling you not to modify them if you wish to upgrade PrestaShop to newer versions in the future. That is because PrestaShop allows you to override its classes and controllers in the override directory. By overriding classes and controllers instead of modifying them, you can safely overwrite them with new versions in the future without having to worry about losing any changes you have made. PrestaShop’s modules also have the same warning, since they can be overridden in a theme by mirroring the module’s directory inside the theme, e.g. themes/themename/modules/blockuserinfo/blockuserinfo.tpl.
Models
The models in the /classes directory of PrestaShop are all PHP classes that extend the ObjectModel class. This class gives the model a unique ID and a table name and identifier to link it to a row in the database. For example, in the Address model, the ID is a positive integer, the table name is address and the table identifier is id_address. The ObjectModel class also defines the model’s field sizes and the functions in the Validate class that are used to validate fields. It also links the model to the webservice feature and provides a cache. The model class names all end in Core so they can be overridden in the /override/classes directory. Here is a description of each PrestaShop model:
Model Filename
Description
Address.php
Customer, manufacturer and supplier addresses.
AddressFormat.php
Address format for each country.
Alias.php
Aliases used to redirect typos in the search box in the Front Office.
Attachment.php
File attachments that are added to products.
Attribute.php
Product attributes that display as dropdowns on the product page.
AttributeGroup.php
Product attribute groups that display as labels for the dropdowns.
Carrier.php
Carriers used to ship products to customers.
Cart.php
Customer carts including those that didn’t result in an order.
Category.php
Product categories used to organise products.
CMS.php
CMS pages used to display information.
CMSCategory.php
Categories used to organise CMS pages.
Combination.php
Combinations of product attributes and their prices.
Configuration.php
All of PrestaShop’s configuration settings.
Connection.php
Statistics about page visits.
ConnectionsSource.php
Statistics about the source of page visits.
Contact.php
Departments that can be selected on the contact form.
Country.php
Countries used in addresses.
Currency.php
Currencies used in prices.
Customer.php
Customers who have registered.
CustomerMessage.php
Individual messages sent between customers and employees.
CustomerThread.php
Threads of messages sent between customers and employees.
DateRange.php
Date ranges used in page visits.
Delivery.php
Links between carriers, zones and ranges.
Discount.php
Vouchers that can be used by customers.
Employee.php
Employees who can log in to the Back Office.
Feature.php
Product feature labels on the product page.
FeatureValue.php
Product feature values on the product page.
Group.php
Customer groups and display methods.
GroupReduction.php
Customer group reductions.
Guest.php
Customers who haven’t registered.
Hook.php
Hooks where modules can be placed.
Image.php
Product images.
ImageType.php
Image thumbnail sizes.
Language.php
Languages used on the website.
Manufacturer.php
Product manufacturers.
Message.php
Customer messages sent from the order history page.
Meta.php
Meta-information of PrestaShop’s pages.
Order.php
Customer order information.
OrderDetail.php
Customer order products.
OrderDiscount.php
Customer order vouchers.
OrderHistory.php
Customer order status history.
OrderMessage.php
Prefilled order messages that employees can use.
OrderReturn.php
Merchandise returns.
OrderReturnState.php
Merchandise return statuses.
OrderSlip.php
Credit slips.
OrderState.php
Order statuses.
Pack.php
Product packs (extends Product class).
Page.php
PrestaShop’s non-CMS pages.
PaymentCC.php
Order credit card information.
Product.php
Product information.
ProductDownload.php
Downloadable products.
Profile.php
Profiles used to restrict employee access.
QuickAccess.php
Shortcuts in the dropdown at the top of the Back Office.
RangePrice.php
Carrier price ranges.
RangeWeight.php
Carrier weight ranges.
Referrer.php
Affiliate program data.
SearchEngine.php
Search engines tracked when guests visit.
Scene.php
Image maps that link products to banners.
Shop.php
Multiple shops (not yet implemented).
SpecificPrice.php
Specific prices including quantity discounts.
State.php
States used in addresses.
Store.php
Stores used in the store locator module.
StockMvt.php
Stock movements used to track employees’ changes.
StockMvtReason.php
Stock movement reasons.
SubDomain.php
Subdomains used by PrestaShop’s cookie.
Supplier.php
Product suppliers.
Tab.php
Back Office tabs and positions.
Tag.php
Product tags used by the tag cloud module.
Tax.php
Tax names and rates.
TaxRules.php
Specific tax rules.
TaxRulesGroup.php
Groups of the tax rules.
Webservice.php
External access to the database.
Zone.php
Zones used by the carriers.
Here’s a description of the other PrestaShop classes that do not store data in the database:
Class Filename
Description
AdminTab.php
Provides basic Back Office tab functionality.
Backup.php
Creates backups of the PrestaShop database.
Blowfish.php
Encrypts the PrestaShop cookie with Blowfish.
Cache.php
Provides basic caching functionality.
CacheFS.php
Perform File System caching.
CarrierModule.php
Provides basic shipping module functionality.
Chart.php
Creates charts.
ControllerFactory.php
Calls a controller and any overrides.
Cookie.php
Reads and writes PrestaShop’s cookie.
Customization.php
Gets product customization.
Db.php
Provides basic database functionality.
FrontController.php
Initialises Smarty variables and other basic controller code.
HelpAccess.php
Displays help tooltips and documentation.
ImportModule.php
Provides basic shop import functionality.
Link.php
Gets links to products, categories, CMS pages, etc.
LocalizationPack.php
Installs localisation packs.
Mail.php
Sends emails.
MCached.php
Performs Memcaching.
Module.php
Provides basic module functionality.
ModuleGraph.php
Provides module graph functionality.
ModuleGraphEngine.php
Provides module graph engine functionality.
ModuleGrid.php
Provides module grid functionality.
ModuleGridEngine.php
Provides module grid engine functionality.
MySQL.php
Provides access to a MySQL database.
PaymentModule.php
Provides basic payment module functionality.
PDF.php
Creates PDF invoices and delivery slips.
ProductSale.php
Manages product sale numbers.
Rijndael.php
Encrypts PrestaShop’s cookie using mcrypt.
Search.php
Performs searchs on products.
Validate.php
Validates data.
Here’s a description of the ObjectModel members:
Member Name
Description
$_cache
Stores a cache of all object.
$fieldsRequired
The required fields.
$fieldsRequiredDatabase
The required fields that have been overridden by an employee.
$fieldsSize
The maximum size of each non-translatable field.
$fieldsSizeLang
The maximum size of each translatable field.
$fieldsValidate
Array of validation functions that check non-translatable fields.
$fieldsValidateLang
Array of validation functions that check translatable fields.
$id
The integer ID of the object, e.g. 1
$identifier
The name of the ID of the object, e.g. id_address
$table
The main table used by the object.
$tables
All the tables used by the object.
$webserviceParameters
The webservice parameters for the object.
Here’s a description of the ObjectModel functions:
Function Name
Description
__construct()
Loads an object with the specified ID and language.
add()
Adds the current object to the database.
clearCache()
Used to clear the cache whenever an object is modified.
delete()
Deletes the current object from the database.
deleteSelection()
Deletes the specified list of objects from the database.
displayFieldName()
Gets the unique name of a field.
getFields()
Gets the non-translatable fields for the object.
getFieldsRequiredDatabase()
Gets the required fields overridden by an employee.
getTranslationFields()
Gets the translatable fields for the object.
getValidationRules()
Gets the validation rules for the object.
getWebserviceObjectList()
Gets a list of all webservice objects.
getWebserviceParameters()
Gets the webservice parameters for the object.
save()
Saves the object, adding it or updating it as necessary.
toggleStatus()
Toggles whether the object is visible on the website.
update()
Updates the current object in the database.
validateController()
Checks whether required fields have valid data.
validateFields()
Checks whether required non-translatable fields have valid data.
validateFieldsLang()
Checks whether required translatable fields have valid data.
Here’s a description of the validation functions:
Function Name
Description
isAbsoluteUrl()
Is an absolute URL (e.g., http://www.domain.com).
isAddress()
Is an address line (^!<>?=+@{}_$% not allowed).
isAnything()
Accepts anything without doing any validation.
isBirthDate()
Is empty date or a date in yyyy-mm-dd format at least 9 years ago.
isBool()
Is a Boolean value 0 or 1.
isBool_Id()
Is a Boolean id (0 or 1 followed by an underscore, then digits).
isCarrierName()
Is a valid carrier name (^<>;=#{} not allowed).
isCatalogName()
Is a catalog name (^<>;=#{} not allowed).
isCityName()
Is a city name (^!<>;?=+@#"°{}_$% not allowed).
isCleanHtml()
Is HTML without script tags or events.
isColor()
Is a colour keyword or hexadecimal code.
isConfigName()
Is a configuration key (alphanumeric and hypens).
isCookie()
Is an instance of the Cookie class.
isCoordinate()
Is a coordinate (up to 6 digits, a period, then up to 6 digits).
isCountryName()
Is a country name (lowercase letters, spaces and hyphens).
isDate()
Is a date in yyyy-mm-dd format.
isDateFormat()
Is a valid date in yyyy-mm-dd format.
isDiscountName()
Is a valid voucher code (3-32 characters except ^!<>,;?=+()@"°{}_$%:).
isDistanceUnit()
Is a distance unit (up to 2 letters).
isDni()
Is a valid DNI, NIF, CIF or NIE code and return an error code (deprecated).
isDniBool()
Whether an error code was returned from isDni (deprecated).
isEan13()
Is a 13-digit EAN13 code.
isEmail()
Is an email of the form username@domain.tld.
isFileName()
Is a valid filename (alphanumeric, hyphens, underscores and periods).
isFloat()
Is a valid float value.
isGenderIsoCode()
Is a valid gender ISO code (0, 1 [male], 2 [female] or 9 [unknown]) (deprecated).
isGenderName()
Is a valid gender name (lowercase alphanumeric and period) (deprecated).
isGenericName()
Is a generic name (^<>;=#{} not allowed).
isGranularityValue()
Is a date format using lowercase d, m and y (deprecated).
isHookName()
Is a valid hook name (lowercase alphanumeric and hyphens).
isImageSize()
Is an image size (up to 4 digits).
isIcoFile()
Is a valid filename ending in .ico (deprecated).
isIconFile()
Is a valid filename ending in .gif, .jpg, .jpeg or .png (deprecated).
isImageTypeName()
Is a valid image type name (lowercase alphanumeric, spaces and hyphens).
isInt()
Is an integer.
isIp2Long()
Is a valid IP address.
isLabel()
Is a customisation field label (^{}<> allowed).
isLangIsoCode()
Is a language iso code (2 or 3 alphanumeric).
isLanguageFileName()
Is a language filename (2 or 3 alphanumeric followed by .gzip).
isLanguageIsoCode()
Is a valid language ISO code (2 or 3 lowercase letters).
isLinkRewrite()
Is a rewritten link (lowercase alphanumeric, hypens and underscores).
isLoadedObject()
Is a variable is an object and has a valid ID.
isLocalizationPackSelection()
Is "states", "taxes", "currencies", "languages" or "units".
isMailName()
Is a valid mail name (^<>;=#{} not allowed).
isMailSubject()
Is a valid mail subject (^<>{} not allowed).
isMessage()
Is a message (<>{} not allowed except <br />).
isMd5()
Is a valid MD5 hash.
isModuleName()
Is a valid module name (lowercase alphanumeric and hyphens).
isModuleUrl()
Is a valid URL to a zip, tgz or tar.gz file.
isName()
Is a valid name (^0-9!<>,;?=+()@#"°{}_$%: not allowed).
isOptFloat()
Is an empty field or valid float value.
isOptId()
Is an empty field or a positive integer (deprecated).
isOrderWay()
Is a valid order way 'ASC', 'DESC', 'asc' or 'desc'.
isOrderBy()
Is a valid order (lowercase alphanumeric, hyphens and underscores).
isPasswd()
Is a customer password (5-32 alphanumeric and (). -!@#$%\^&*).
isPasswdAdmin()
Is an employee password (8-32 alphanumeric and (). -!@#$%\^&*).
isPostCode()
Is a postcode (alphanumeric and hyphens).
isPrice()
Is a valid price (up to 10 digits, a period, then up to 9 digits).
isPriceDisplayMethod()
Is a price display method (must be PS_TAX_EXC or PS_TAX_INC values).
isProtocol()
Is the protocol http or https (deprecated).
isReductionType()
Is a reduction type "amount" or "percentage".
isReference()
Is a reference (^<>;={} not allowed).
isSerializedArray()
Is a serialised array.
isSha1()
Is a valid SHA1 hash.
IsSortDirection()
Is a sort direction 'ASC' or 'DESC'.
isStateIsoCode()
Is a valid state ISO code (up to 4 lowercase alphanumeric).
isString()
Is a string.
isSubDomainName()
Is a subdomain name.
isTableOrIdentifier()
Is a table name (lowercase alphanumeric, hyphens and underscores).
isTabName()
Is a valid tab name (alphanumeric, hyphens and underscores).
isTagsList()
Is a tags list (^!<>;?=+#"°{}_$% not allowed).
isTplFileName()
Is a valid template filename (alphanumeric, hyphens and underscores) (deprecated).
isTplName()
Is a valid template name (lowercase alphanumeric and hyphens).
isUnsignedFloat()
Is a valid positive float value.
isUnsignedId()
Is a positive integer.
isUnsignedInt()
Is a positive integer.
isUrl()
Is a valid URL.
isUpc()
Is a 12-digit UPC code.
isValidSearch()
Is a valid search (up to 64 characters except ^<>;=#{}).
isValuesList()
Is a MySQL query values list (deprecated).
isVoucherDescription()
Is a voucher description (<>{} not allowed except <br />).
isWeightUnit()
Is a weight unit (up to 3 letters).
isZipCodeFormat()
Is a zip code format (using uppercase letters N, L, C, spaces and hyphens).
isZoneName()
Is a zone name (lowercase letters, hyphens, spaces and parentheses) (deprecated).
Views
PrestaShop uses Smarty templating for its views, which supplements HTML with a flexible syntax to add variables, if statements, loops and other PHP code to the view. Most of the TPL files have the same name as the PHP file that calls them. For example, 404.php calls 404.tpl. Here is a description of PrestaShop’s templates:
View Filename
Description
404.tpl
The “Page not found” page.
address.tpl
The address form.
addresses.tpl
Lists customer addresses.
authentication.tpl
The login and registration forms.
best-sales.tpl
Lists the best-selling products.
breadcrumb.tpl
The breadcrumb bar at the top of the centre column.
category-cms-tree.tpl
Used by sitemap.php to list CMS pages on the sitemap.
category-tree-branch.tpl
Used by sitemap.php to list subcategories on the sitemap.
category.tpl
Lists a category’s subcategories and products.
cms.tpl
Displays a CMS page.
contact-form.tpl
The customer service contact form.
discount.tpl
Lists vouchers available to a customer.
errors.tpl
Displays error messages.
footer.tpl
The footer at the bottom of the website.
guest-tracking.tpl
The guest order tracking form.
header.tpl
The header at the top of the website.
history.tpl
Lists a customer’s orders.
identity.tpl
The customer’s personal information form.
index.tpl
The center column on the homepage.
maintenance.tpl
The maintenance page when the shop is disabled.
manufacturer-list.tpl
Lists manufacturers.
manufacturer.tpl
Lists the products of a manufacturer.
my-account.tpl
The account page of a customer.
new-products.tpl
Lists new products.
order-address.tpl
Used by order.php and order-opc.php for the address step.
order-carrier.tpl
Used by order.php and order-opc.php for the carrier step.
order-confirmation.tpl
The order confirmation page.
order-detail.tpl
Used by guest-tracking.php and history.php for order details.
order-follow.tpl
Lists a customer’s merchandise returns.
order-opc.tpl
The one-page checkout page.
order-opc-new-account.tpl
Used by order-opc.php for the login and new account forms.
order-payment.tpl
Used by order-opc.php for the payment step.
order-return.tpl
Displays information about a merchandise return.
order-slip.tpl
Lists a customer’s credit clips.
order-steps.tpl
Used by order.php to display the order steps.
pagination.tpl
The page navigation at the bottom of the centre column.
password.tpl
The lost password form.
prices-drop.tpl
Lists discounted products.
product-compare.tpl
Adds product comparison checkboxes to the product listings.
product-list.tpl
Lists products.
product-sort.tpl
The “Sort by” form at the top of product listings.
product.tpl
Information about a product.
products-comparison.tpl
The product comparison page.
restricted-country.tpl
Displays a message when a customer has been restricted by country.
scenes.tpl
Used by category.php to display banners that link to products.
search.tpl
List the search results page.
shopping-cart-product-line.tpl
Used by shopping-cart.tpl to display a product line in the cart summary.
shopping-cart.tpl
Used by order.php and order-opc.php to display the cart summary.
sitemap.tpl
The sitemap of the website.
store_infos.tpl
The store opening hours.
stores.tpl
The store information and Google map.
supplier-list.tpl
Lists suppliers.
supplier.tpl
Lists products from a supplier.
Controllers
Here’s a list of PrestaShop’s controllers and a description of what each of them do:
Controller Name
Description
AddressController.php
Used by address.php to edit a customer’s address.
AddressesController.php
Used by addresses.php to get a customer’s addresses.
AuthController.php
Used by authentication.php to manage customer login.
BestSalesController.php
Used by best-sales.php to get the best-selling products.
CartController.php
Used by cart.php to manage the customer’s cart.
CategoryController.php
Used by category.php to get product categories.
CMSController.php
Used by cms.php to get a CMS page.
CompareController.php
Used by products-comparison.php to compare products.
ContactController.php
Used by contact-form.php to send messages to employees.
DiscountController.php
Used by discount.php to get vouchers available to a customer.
GuestTrackingController.php
Used by guest-tracking.php to manage guest orders.
HistoryController.php
Used by history.php to get a customer’s orders.
IdentityController.php
Used by identity.php to get a customer’s personal information.
IndexController.php
Used by index.php to display the homepage.
ManufacturerController.php
Used by manufacturer.php to get manufacturers and their products.
MyAccountController.php
Used by my-account.php to display a customer’s account page.
NewProductsController.php
Used by new-products.php to get a list of new products.
OrderConfirmationController.php
Used by order-confirmation.php to manage the order confirmation page.
OrderController.php
Used by order.php to manage the five-step checkout pages.
OrderDetailController.php
Used by order-detail.php to get a single customer order.
OrderFollowController.php
Used by order-follow.php to get a list of a customer’s merchandise returns.
OrderOpcController.php
Used by order-opc.php to manage the one-page checkout page.
OrderReturnController.php
Used by order-return.php to get a single merchandise return.
OrderSlipController.php
Used by order-slip.php to get a list of a customer’s credit slips.
PageNotFoundController.php
Used by 404.php to manage the “Page not found” page.
ParentOrderController.php
Used by OrderController.php and OrderOpcController.php for shared code.
PasswordController.php
Used by password.php to allow a customer to reset a lost password.
PricesDropController.php
Used by prices-drop.php to get a list of discounted products.
ProductController.php
Used by product.php to get a product.
SearchController.php
Used by search.php to perform a search and get the results.
SitemapController.php
Used by sitemap.php to get the sitemap of the website.
StoresController.php
Used by stores.php to get store information and Google map coordinates.
SupplierController.php
Used by supplier.php to get suppliers and their products.
All controllers in PrestaShop extend the FrontController class. Here’s a description of the FrontController members:
Member Name
Description
$auth
Whether a customer must log in before they can access the page.
$authRedirection
The page redirected to after logging in.
$cart
The current customer’s or guest’s cart.
$cookie
Used to access PrestaShop’s cookie variables.
$currentCustomerGroups
Caches the current customer’s groups.
$errors
An array of errors that have occurred.
$guestAllowed
Whether a customer who has signed out can access the page.
$initialized
Whether the init() function has been called.
$iso
The iso code of the currently selected language.
$link
Used to generate PrestaShop links.
$n
The number of items per page.
$orderBy
The field used to sort.
$orderWay
Whether to sort ascending or descending ("ASC" or "DESC").
$p
The current page number.
$smarty
Used to access Smarty variables and functions.
$ssl
Whether the page is loaded using SSL when it is available.
Here’s a description of the controller functions in the order they are executed:
Function Name
Description
__construct()
Sets all the controller’s member variables.
preProcess()
Assigns variables that can be used in the header template file.
setMedia()
Adds all JavaScript and CSS specific to the page so it can be combined, compressed and cached.
displayHeader()
Calls the header template file.
process()
Assigns variables that can be used by the content template file.
displayContent()
Calls the content template file.
displayFooter()
Calls the footer template file.
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