I need to add the ability to track user actions by storing in a DB the IP address, the logged in user information and the action itself which is the URL the user is accessing. I would like to store also which parameters are being sent to the backend (POST|GET) if it's possible.
I don't like to reinvent the wheel so I took some time to perform a Google search and this ci-usertracking shows up. It's really old, it says it only has been tested from 1.6.3 to 1.7.1 (weird 1.7.0 is being skipped because of a bug).
I am using CI 2.1.3 (yessssss: outdated not the last version on the 2.x branch but is what we have in this legacy project and I don't want to update it to a newest version because I can cause caos lol).
This is what I have done so far (after download the files and unpack them :) ):
//application/config/usertracking_config.php
$config['usertracking']['user_identifier'] = null;
$config['usertracking']['auto_track'] = true;
$config['usertracking']['tracking_filter'][] = null;
$config['usertracking']['tracking_filter_logic'] = 'OR';
$config['usertracking']['auto_build_db'] = false;
$config['usertracking']['auto_fix_db'] = false;
// application/config/autoload.php
$autoload['libraries'] = array('Template', 'database', 'session', 'Ion_auth', 'Usertracking');
// application/hooks/hooks.php
$hook['post_system'][] = array(
'class' => 'Usertracking',
'function' => 'auto_track',
'filename' => 'Usertracking.php',
'filepath' => 'libraries'
);
I am debugging the application using Xdebug and I am able to see the Usertracking class constructor being called but for some reason the function auto_track() is not called and therefore nothing is happening meaning nothing is being written to the DB.
Here is the code for the Usertracking class (apologies since it's large):
<?php
if (!defined('BASEPATH')) {
exit('No direct script access allowed');
}
/**
* User Tracking for CodeIgniter
*
* A library for tracking user activity in CodeIgniter applications.
* Requires PHP v.5.1 or higher.
*
* @package Usertracking for CodeIgniter
* @author Casey McLaughlin
* @copyright Open Source BSD License
* @license http://caseyamcl.com/resources/userTrackingForCI#license
* @link http://caseyamcl.com/resources/userTrackingForCI#license
* @since Version 1.2
* @filesource
*/
// ------------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Usertracking library
*
* @package Usertracking for CodeIgniter
* @subpackage Libraries
* @author Casey McLaughlin
* @link http://caseyamcl.com/resources/userTrackingForCI#license
*/
class Usertracking
{
private $CI;
private $configuration;
private $needed_fields = array(
array(
'name' => 'id',
'type' => 'int',
'primary_key' => 1,
'forge_type' => 'int',
'forge_auto_increment' => true
),
array('name' => 'session_id', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'varchar', 'forge_constraint' => '100'),
array('name' => 'user_identifier', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'varchar', 'forge_constraint' => '255'),
array('name' => 'request_uri', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'text'),
array('name' => 'timestamp', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'varchar', 'forge_constraint' => '20'),
array('name' => 'client_ip', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'varchar', 'forge_constraint' => '50'),
array('name' => 'client_user_agent', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'text'),
array('name' => 'referer_page', 'type' => 'string', 'forge_type' => 'text')
);
/**
* Constructor
*
* Does nothing but run the initialization
* method.
*
* @access public
* @return void|boolean Will return FALSE if the intialization did not succeed.
*/
public function __construct()
{
//connect to CodeIgnitor
if (!$this->CI =& get_instance()) {
echo 'The UserTracking library is built for CodeIgnitor 1.6.3 and cannot be used outside of CI.';
exit();
}
$this->initialize();
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Initialization script
*
* Checks the environment to ensure that the library
* will run.
*
* @access public
* @return boolean The result of the intialization process
*/
public function initialize()
{
//if php is not new enough, show error and die.
if (PHP_VERSION < 5.1) {
show_error('The Usertracking plugin is supported only on PHP v5.1 and above!');
return false;
}
//check for the configuration file
if (!$this->CI->config->load('usertracking_config') OR $this->CI->config->item('usertracking') === false) {
show_error('Missing the configuration for UserTracking. Ensure you have installed UserTracking correctly.');
return false;
}
//Load the configuration
$this->configuration = $this->CI->config->item('usertracking');
//check the database for the table
if (!$this->check_database()) {
show_error('The database is not setup correctly for UserTracking. Check to ensure proper database setup, or check the config settings for usertracking.');
return false;
}
//if made it here
return true;
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Automatically Track User Events
*
* Auto-track is meant to be run only from a CodeIgniter hook. It
* checks to ensure that autotracking is enabled, checks any filters
* that may have been configured in the configuration file, and then
* runs the {@link trackThis()} method.
*
* @return boolean The result of the tracking action (whether a db record was added or not)
*/
public function auto_track()
{
//check the conditions
if ($this->configuration['auto_track'] === true) {
$proceed = $this->check_filters();
if ($proceed === true) {
return $this->track_this();
}
}
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Track the current pageview
*
* Retrieves information from the session, user agent, and server
* fields, and then adds a record to the tracking database.
*
* @access public
* @return boolean The result of the tracking action (whether a db record was added or not)
*/
public function track_this()
{
//load necessary libraries
$this->CI->load->database();
$this->CI->load->library('user_agent');
$this->CI->load->library('session');
//get the data
$input_data = array();
$input_data['session_id'] = $this->CI->session->userdata('session_id');
$input_data['request_uri'] = $this->CI->input->server('REQUEST_URI');
$input_data['timestamp'] = time();
$input_data['client_ip'] = $this->CI->input->server('REMOTE_ADDR');
$input_data['client_user_agent'] = $this->CI->agent->agent_string();
$input_data['referer_page'] = $this->CI->agent->referrer();
//Get the user identifier, if set
if ($this->configuration['user_identifier'] !== null && is_array($this->configuration['user_identifier'])) {
if (count($this->configuration['user_identifier']) === 3) {
list($class_type, $class_name, $function_name) = $this->configuration['user_identifier'];
$the_args = array();
} elseif (count($this->configuration['user_identifier']) === 4) {
list($class_type, $class_name, $function_name, $the_args) = $this->configuration['user_identifier'];
}
if (!$this->CI->load->$class_type($class_name)) {
if ((($class_type !== 'helper') &&
!method_exists($this->CI->$class_name,
$function_name)) OR ($class_type === 'helper' && !function_exists($function_name))) {
show_error("Could not load the $function_name in $class_name. Check the userIdentifier configuration in userTracking config. User Identifier will not be tracked.");
} else //Do it!
{
if ($class_type === 'helper') {
$input_data['user_identifier'] = call_user_func_array($function_name, $the_args);
} else {
$input_data['user_identifier'] = call_user_func_array(
array(
$this->CI->$class_name,
$function_name
),
$the_args
);
}
}
} else {
show_error("Could not load the $class_type: $class_name. Check the userIdentifier configuration in userTracking config. User Identifier will not be tracked.");
}
}
//Add it to the database
$this->CI->load->database();
$result = $this->CI->db->insert('usertracking', $input_data);
if ($result === false) {
show_error('Could not write to the usertracking table in the database while trying to add a tracking record. Double-check configureation and datbase setup for Usertracking library!');
}
//Return the database write result
return $result;
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Check/Process filters
*
* This is run as part of the autoTrack() function. It processes any
* filters defined in the configuration file and returns either TRUE or FALSE.
*
* @access private
* @return boolean Whether or not the filter tests suceeded.
*/
private function check_filters()
{
//Get the tracking filters from the config
$tracking_filters = $this->configuration['tracking_filter'];
//If there are filters, process them
if (is_array($tracking_filters) && count($tracking_filters) > 0 && $tracking_filters[0] !== null) {
$filter_results = array();
//go through each tracking filter and make sure that they pass
foreach ($tracking_filters as $curr_filter) {
//Check the filter for the right type
if (!is_array($curr_filter) OR (count($curr_filter) !== 4 && count($curr_filter) !== 5)) {
show_error("The userTracking filter is malformed. Check the userTracking configuration. Filter: $curr_filter");
continue;
}
if (count($curr_filter) === 4) {
list($class_type, $class_name, $function_name, $expected_result) = $curr_filter;
$the_args = array(); //This is empty
} elseif (count($curr_filter) === 5) {
list($class_type, $class_name, $function_name, $expected_result, $the_args) = $curr_filter;
} else {
show_error("The userTracking filter is malformed. Check the userTracking configuration. Filter: $curr_filter");
continue;
}
//Run the filter
if (!$this->CI->load->$class_type($class_name)) {
if ((($class_type !== 'helper') &&
!method_exists($this->CI->$class_name,
$function_name)) OR ($class_type === 'helper' && !function_exists($function_name))) {
show_error("Could not load the $function_name in $class_name. The filter will not be applied.");
} else //Do it!
{
if ($class_type === 'helper') {
$curr_filter_result = call_user_func_array($function_name, $the_args);
} else {
$curr_filter_result = call_user_func_array(array($this->CI->$class_name, $function_name),
$the_args);
}
}
} else {
show_error("Could not load the $class_type: $class_name. Check the userIdentifier configuration in userTracking config. User filter will not be applied.");
}
//Analyze the results
//If there is no result for the current filter, autofail!
if (!isset($curr_filter_result)) {
$filter_results[] = 'fail';
} else //if there is a result, test it
{
//Do a strong type comparison if we are expecting true or false
if ($expected_result === true OR $expected_result === false) {
if ($curr_filter_result === $expected_result) {
$filter_results[] = 'pass';
} else {
$filter_results[] = 'fail';
}
} else //Do a weak type comparison for everything else
{
if ($curr_filter_result == $expected_result) {
$filter_results[] = 'pass';
} else {
$filter_results[] = 'fail';
}
}
}
}
//check the results
if (strtoupper($this->configuration['tracking_filter_logic']) === 'AND') //AND Logic
{
if (!in_array('fail', $filter_results, false)) {
return true;
} else {
return false;
}
} else //OR Logic
{
if (in_array('pass', $filter_results, false)) {
return true;
} else {
return false;
}
}
} else //no filters to check -- pass automatically.
{
return true;
}
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Check Database
*
* This checks and, if defined in the configuration file, builds the
* necessary database tables for tracking using the CI database forge class.
*
* If it finds a malformed table, it will backup that table and create a new one.
*
* @access private
* @return boolean Whether the database table exists or was setup succesfully.
*/
private function check_database()
{
//load the ci database and db forge classes, or show error & return FALSE
$this->CI->load->database();
$this->CI->load->dbforge();
//check to see if the table exists
if ($this->CI->db->table_exists('usertracking')) {
//if the table exists, check to see if the columns are setup correctly
$fields = $this->CI->db->field_data('usertracking');
//if the columns are setup correctly, return TRUE
$num_matched = 0;
foreach ($this->needed_fields as $needed_field) {
$nf_name = $needed_field['name'];
$nf_type = $needed_field['type'];
foreach ($fields as $the_field) {
if ($the_field->name == $nf_name && $the_field->type = $nf_type) {
$num_matched++;
break;
}
}
}
if ($num_matched < count($this->needed_fields) && $this->configuration['auto_fix_db'] === true) {
//if the columns are setup incorrectly and autofix_db is on, fix the db and return TRUE
//rename the table
global $CI;
$db_prefix = $CI->db->dbprefix;
$this->CI->dbforge->rename_table($db_prefix . 'usertracking', 'usertracking_backup_' . time());
$this->CI->db->query('UNLOCK TABLES;');
//rebuild the table
$result = $this->build_database_table();
//return TRUE
return $result;
} elseif ($this->configuration['auto_fix_db'] !== true && $num_matched < count($this->needed_fields)) {
//if the columns are setup incorrectly and autofix_db is off, show error return FALSE
show_error('The database table exists, but is malformed and not setup correctly.');
return false;
} else //everything is setup right
{
return true;
}
} elseif ($this->configuration['auto_build_db'] === true) {
//if the table doesn't exist, and autoBuild_db is on, build the table and return TRUE
$result = $this->build_database_table();
return $result;
} else {
//if the table doesn't exist, and autoBuild_db is off, show error and return FALSE
show_error('The usertracking database table does not exist. Check your database installation.');
return false;
}
}
// --------------------------------------------------------------------
/**
* Build Database Table
*
* Builds the database table. If one already exists, it will overwrite. This method
* should only be called from the {@link checkDatabase} method to avoid potential
* data loss.
*
* @access private
* @return boolean Whether the table was built succesfully
*/
private function build_database_table()
{
//load the ci database and db forge classes, or show error & return FALSE (if not already done)
$this->CI->load->database();
$this->CI->load->dbforge();
//create a new table with the appropriate fields
$new_fields = array();
foreach ($this->needed_fields as $curr_nf) {
$name = $curr_nf['name'];
$new_fields[$name] = array('type' => $curr_nf['forge_type']);
if (isset($curr_nf['forge_constraint'])) {
$new_fields[$name]['constraint'] = $curr_nf['forge_constraint'];
}
if (isset($curr_nf['forge_auto_increment'])) {
$new_fields[$name]['auto_increment'] = $curr_nf['forge_auto_increment'];
}
if (isset($curr_nf['primary_key']) && $curr_nf['primary_key'] === 1) {
$this->CI->dbforge->add_key($name, true);
}
}
$this->CI->dbforge->add_field($new_fields);
$this->CI->dbforge->create_table('usertracking');
return true;
}
}
Maybe this is a miss configuration or something else but I can't find where the problem is. Can any give me some ideas or maybe recommend me a better library for this purpose?
If a hook isn't called there could be a couple reasons.
The hooks config file (hooks.php) might not be configured correctly. Or, in your case, it is where you hooks.php is stored.
You show it as being at
/application/hooks/hooks.php
but it should be at
/application/config/hooks.php.
The directory /application/hooks/ was designed as the place to store files that hook.php loads. But that's not a must-do as long as the config values are right. And yours is if Usertracking.php is in application/libraries.
There is another reason that a hook does not run. If somewhere in the controller (or classes the controller uses i.e. model, libraries, etc) there is a call to exit or die. Either of those PHP methods will short-circuit the framework's designed execution path. The result could mean that multiple hook points will never be evaluated.