The best part of my favorite PHP framework, Zend framework is Zend_Config. With Zend Config you can run you web application with more power full configuration that any one can change your application setting for use.

Read more information about Zend Config at Zend framework manual for Zend Config.

But in most web application you may have many configuration file with special format such as INI, XML or PHP. Also some of configuration is for one part of your application and may you put in special folders.

My Zend framework folder structure

So this is my default Zend framework folder structure that you have see more configuration file.

Default solution

In default solution you need to define a Zend Config object for each file to access file data.
But with this solution you can globally access all files in any format in each folder.

My_Config class for solve better this problem

Look at my class

	/**
	 * @copyright Copyright(c) Muhammad Hussein Fattahizadeh. All rights reserved.
	 * @author Muhammad Hussein Fattahizadeh
	 * @link <http://mhf.ir/>
	 */

	class My_Config
	{
		/**
		 * Base folder that contain config files
		 * @var string
		 */
		private $_baseFolder;

		/**
		 * Create config object
		 */
		public function __construct($baseFolder)
		{
			// check for valid folder
			if(is_dir($baseFolder)) $this->_baseFolder = $baseFolder;
			else throw new Zend_Exception("Invalid base folder for configurations.");
		}

		/**
		 * Set the config object is return the error.
		 * @param string $name
		 * @param object $value
		 */
		public function __set($name, $value)
		{
			throw new Zend_Exception("Configurations is readonly.");
		}

		/**
		 * Get the config data
		 * @param string $name
		 * @return object
		 */
		public function __get($name)
		{
			// set the configuration file path and format
			list($fileFormat, $configPath) = $this->_solvePath($name);

			// switch format for get configuration type
			switch ($fileFormat) {
				case 'ini':
					$value = new Zend_Config_Ini($configPath);
				break;
				case 'xml':
					$value = new Zend_Config_Xml($configPath);
				break;
				case 'php':
					$value = new Zend_Config(require $configPath);
				break;
			}
			return $value;
		}

		/**
		 * Path solver
		 * @param string $pathString
		 * @return array
		 */
		private function _solvePath($pathString)
		{
			// set file format
			$explodePath = explode('_', $pathString);
			$fileFormat = end($explodePath);
			if(!in_array(strtolower($fileFormat), array('ini', 'xml', 'php'))) throw new Zend_Exception("Invalid configuration file format.");

			// process path
			array_pop($explodePath);
			$configPath = implode(DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR, $explodePath);

			// return data
			return array(strtolower($fileFormat), $this->_baseFolder . DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR . $configPath . '.' . $fileFormat);
		}
	}

Easy to use

Here this is an example for using this method for the best way for my solution for tree and multi format configuration file.

	$config = My_Config('/path/to/project/application/configs');

	// just dont forget last part of get method for config is file format look at the examples

	// load '/path/to/project/application/configs/database/mysql/news.xml' and get node adapter data
	echo $config->database_mysql_news_xml->adapter;

	// load '/path/to/project/application/configs/database/mysql/articles.ini' and get node 'params->username' data
	echo $config->database_postgresql_articles_ini->params->username;

Waiting for your comments friends

Be waiting for your comments for improve this solution. Maybe I add it into Zend framework as a new component.