stronger_parameters

This is an extension of strong_parameters with added type checking and conversion.

Simple types

You can specify simple types like this:

params.permit(
  id: Parameters.id,
  name: Parameters.string
)

Arrays

You can specify arrays like this:

params.permit(
  id: Parameters.array(Parameters.id)
)

This will allow an array of id parameters that all are IDs (integer less than 2**31, greater than 0) and convert to Fixnum ('2' --> 2).

Empty array -> nil

Rails converts empty arrays to nil, so often Parameters.array | Parameters.nil is needed.

Allowing nils

It can be convenient to allow nil for all attributes since ActiveRecord converts it to false/0. ActionController::Parameters.allow_nil_for_everything = true

Rejecting nils

You can reject a request that fails to supply certain parameters by marking them as required with the .required operator:

params.permit(
  name: Parameters.string.required, # will not accept a nil or a non-String
  email: Parameters.string          # optional, may be omitted
)

This also works in conjunction with the & and | constraints. For example, to express that a uid must be either a string or a number:

params.permit(
  uid: (Parameters.string | Parameters.integer).required
)

Nested Parameters

params.permit(
  name: Parameters.string,
  emails: Parameters.array(Parameters.string),
  friends: Parameters.array(
    Parameters.map(
      name: Parameters.string,
      family: Parameters.map(
        name: Parameters.string
      ),
      hobbies: Parameters.array(Parameters.string)
    )
  )
)

This will allow parameters like this:

{
  "name": "Mick",
  "emails": ["mick@zendesk.com", "mick@staugaard.com"],
  "friends": [
    {"name": "Morten", "family": {"name": "Primdahl"}, "hobbies": ["work", "art"]},
    {"name": "Eric", "family": {"name": "Chapweske"}, "hobbies": ["boating", "whiskey"]}
  ]
}

ActiveModel Nested Attributes

params.require(:author).permit(
  name: Parameters.string,
  books_attributes: Parameters.array(
    Parameters.map(
      title: Parameters.string,
      id: Parameters.id,
      _destroy: Parameters.boolean
    )
  )
)

This will allow parameters like this:

{
  "author": {
    "name": "Eric Chapweske",
    "books_attributes": [
      {"title": "Boatin' and Drinkin'", "id": 234, "_destroy": true},
      {"title": "Advanced Boatin' and Drinkin'", "id": 567}
    ]
  }
}

Combining Requirements

If you want to permit a parameter to be one of multiple types, you can use the | operator:

params.require(:ticket).permit(
  status: Parameters.id | Parameters.enum('open', 'closed')
)

This will allow these parameter sets:

{
  "ticket": {
    "status": 123
  }
}

{
  "ticket": {
    "status": "open"
  }
}

You can use the & operator to apply further restrictions on the type:

params.require(:user).permit(
  age: Parameters.integer & Parameters.gte(0)
)

This requires the parameter to be an integer greater than or equal to 0.

Combining Requirements in Arrays

You can also use the | and & operators in arrays:

params.require(:group).permit(
  users: Parameters.array(Parameters.id | Parameters.string)
)

This will permit these parameters:

{
  "group": {
    "users": [123, "mick@zendesk.com", 345, 676, "morten@zendesk.com"]
  }
}

Rollout in log-only mode

Just want to log violations in production:

# config/environments/production.rb
ActionController::Parameters.action_on_invalid_parameters = :log

Controller support

Include PermittedParameters into a controller to force the developer to explicitly permit params for every action.

Examples:

class TestController < ApplicationController
  include StrongerParameters::ControllerSupport::PermittedParameters

  permitted_parameters :all, locale: Parameters.string # permit :locale in all actions for this controller

  permitted_parameters :show, id: Parameters.integer
  def show
  end

  permitted_parameters :create, topic: { forum: { id: Parameters.integer } }
  def create
  end

  permitted_parameters :index, {} # no parameters permitted
  def index
  end

  permitted_parameters :update, :skip # use when migrating old controllers/actions
  def update
  end
end

Log only mode for invalid parameters

To only log invalid (not unpermitted) parameters during rollout of stronger_parameters:

class MyController < ApplicationController
  log_invalid_parameters! if Rails.env.production? # Still want other environments and controllers to raise

  permitted_parameters :update, user: { name: Parameters.string }
  def update
  end
end

Notifying users about unpermitted params

Add headers to all requests that have unpermitted params (does not log invalid):

# config/application.rb
config.stronger_parameters_violation_header = 'X-StrongerParameters-API-Warn'

curl -I 'http://localhost/api/users/1.json' -X POST -d '{ "user": { "id": 1 } }'
=> HTTP/1.1 200 OK
=> ...
=> X-StrongerParameters-API-Warn: Removed restricted keys ["user.id"] from parameters

Types

Syntax	(Simplified) Definition
Parameters.string	value.is_a?(String)
Parameters.integer	value.is_a?(Fixnum) or '-1'
Parameters.float	value.is_a?(Float) or '-1.2'
Parameters.date	value.is_a?(Date) or '2014-05-13' or '13.05.2014'
Parameters.date_iso8601	value is a date that conforms to ISO8601: '2014-05-13'
Parameters.time	value.is_a?(Time) or '2014-05-13' or '2015-03-31 14:34:56 +0000'
Parameters.time_iso8601	value is a time that conforms to ISO8601: '2014-05-13' or '2015-03-31T14:34:56Z'
Parameters.datetime	value.is_a?(DateTime) or '2014-05-13' or '2015-03-31T14:34:56Z'
Parameters.datetime_iso8601	value is a date that conforms to ISO8601: '2014-05-13' or '2015-03-31T14:34:56Z'
Parameters.regexp(/foo/)	value =~ regexp
Parameters.enum('asc', 'desc')	['asc', 'desc'].include?(value)
Parameters.lt(10)	value < 10
Parameters.lte(10)	value <= 10
Parameters.gt(0)	value > 0
Parameters.gte(0)	value >= 0
Parameters.integer32	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 31) & Parameters.gte(-2 31)
Parameters.integer64	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 63) & Parameters.gte(-2 63)
Parameters.id	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 ** 31) & Parameters.gte(0)
Parameters.bigid	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 ** 63) & Parameters.gte(0)
Parameters.uid	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 ** 32) & Parameters.gte(0)
Parameters.ubigid	Parameters.integer & Parameters.lt(2 ** 64) & Parameters.gte(0)
Parameters.boolean	Parameters.enum(true, false, 'true', 'false', 1, 0)
Parameters.nil	value is nil
Parameters.nil_string	value is nil, '', 'undefined'
Parameters.file	File, StringIO, Rack::Test::UploadedFile, ActionDispatch::Http::UploadedFile or subclasses
Parameters.decimal(8,2)	value is a String, Integer or Float with a precision of 9 and scale of 2
Parameters.hex	value is a String that matches the hexadecimal format
Parameters.ulid	value is a String of length 26 with only Crockford Base32 symbols

Development

Releasing a new version

git checkout master && git fetch origin && git reset --hard origin/master
bundle exec rake bump:<patch|minor|major>
# -> manually edit changelog
git commit -a --amend --no-edit
bundle exec rake release

github action will release a new version to rubygems.org
approve the new version here