Action Controller Parameters
Allows you to choose which attributes should be permitted for mass updating and thus prevent accidentally exposing that which shouldn't be exposed. Provides two methods for this purpose: require and permit. The former is used to mark parameters as required. The latter is used to set the parameter as permitted and limit which attributes should be allowed for mass updating.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  person: {
    name: "Francesco",
    age:  22,
    role: "admin"
  }
})
permitted = params.require(:person).permit(:name, :age)
permitted            # => <ActionController::Parameters {"name"=>"Francesco", "age"=>22} permitted: true>
permitted.permitted? # => true
Person.first.update!(permitted)
# => #<Person id: 1, name: "Francesco", age: 22, role: "user">
It provides two options that controls the top-level behavior of new instances:
- 
permit_all_parameters- If it'strue, all the parameters will be permitted by default. The default isfalse.
- 
action_on_unpermitted_parameters- Allow to control the behavior when parameters that are not explicitly permitted are found. The values can befalseto just filter them out,:logto additionally write a message on the logger, or:raiseto raiseActionController::UnpermittedParametersexception. The default value is:login test and development environments,falseotherwise.
Examples:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new
params.permitted? # => false
ActionController::Parameters.permit_all_parameters = true
params = ActionController::Parameters.new
params.permitted? # => true
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: "123", b: "456")
params.permit(:c)
# => <ActionController::Parameters {} permitted: true>
ActionController::Parameters.action_on_unpermitted_parameters = :raise
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: "123", b: "456")
params.permit(:c)
# => ActionController::UnpermittedParameters: found unpermitted keys: a, b
Please note that these options *are not thread-safe*. In a multi-threaded environment they should only be set once at boot-time and never mutated at runtime.
You can fetch values of ActionController::Parameters using either :key or "key".
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(key: "value")
params[:key]  # => "value"
params["key"] # => "value"
Methods
- ==
- []
- []=
- as_json
- converted_arrays
- deep_dup
- delete
- delete_if
- dig
- each
- each_key
- each_pair
- each_value
- empty?
- except
- extract!
- fetch
- fields_for_style?
- has_key?
- has_value?
- include?
- inspect
- keep_if
- key?
- keys
- merge
- merge!
- new
- permit
- permit!
- permitted?
- reject
- reject!
- require
- required
- reverse_merge
- reverse_merge!
- select
- select!
- slice
- slice!
- to_h
- to_hash
- to_param
- to_query
- to_s
- to_unsafe_h
- to_unsafe_hash
- transform_keys
- transform_keys!
- transform_values
- transform_values!
- value?
- values
- values_at
- with_defaults
- with_defaults!
Constants
| EMPTY_ARRAY | = | [] | 
| EMPTY_HASH | = | {} | 
| PERMITTED_SCALAR_TYPES | = | [ String, Symbol, NilClass, Numeric, TrueClass, FalseClass, Date, Time, # DateTimes are Dates, we document the type but avoid the redundant check. StringIO, IO, ActionDispatch::Http::UploadedFile, Rack::Test::UploadedFile, ] | 
| This is a white list of permitted scalar types that includes the ones supported in XML and JSON requests. This list is in particular used to filter ordinary requests,  If you modify this collection please update the  | ||
Attributes
| [R] | parameters | |
| [W] | permitted | 
Class Public methods
new(parameters = {})
Returns a new instance of ActionController::Parameters. Also, sets the permitted attribute to the default value of ActionController::Parameters.permit_all_parameters.
class Person < ActiveRecord::Base
end
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(name: "Francesco")
params.permitted?  # => false
Person.new(params) # => ActiveModel::ForbiddenAttributesError
ActionController::Parameters.permit_all_parameters = true
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(name: "Francesco")
params.permitted?  # => true
Person.new(params) # => #<Person id: nil, name: "Francesco">
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 242
    def initialize(parameters = {})
      @parameters = parameters.with_indifferent_access
      @permitted = self.class.permit_all_parameters
    endInstance Public methods
==(other)
Returns true if another Parameters object contains the same content and permitted flag.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 249
    def ==(other)
      if other.respond_to?(:permitted?)
        permitted? == other.permitted? && parameters == other.parameters
      else
        @parameters == other
      end
    end[](key)
Returns a parameter for the given key. If not found, returns nil.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(person: { name: "Francesco" })
params[:person] # => <ActionController::Parameters {"name"=>"Francesco"} permitted: false>
params[:none]   # => nil
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 570
    def [](key)
      convert_hashes_to_parameters(key, @parameters[key])
    end[]=(key, value)
Assigns a value to a given key. The given key may still get filtered out when permit is called.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 576
    def []=(key, value)
      @parameters[key] = value
    endas_json(options=nil)
Returns a hash that can be used as the JSON representation for the parameters.
converted_arrays()
Attribute that keeps track of converted arrays, if any, to avoid double looping in the common use case permit + mass-assignment. Defined in a method to instantiate it only if needed.
Testing membership still loops, but it's going to be faster than our own loop that converts values. Also, we are not going to build a new array object per fetch.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 369
    def converted_arrays
      @converted_arrays ||= Set.new
    enddeep_dup()
Returns duplicate of object including all parameters.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 805
    def deep_dup
      self.class.new(@parameters.deep_dup).tap do |duplicate|
        duplicate.permitted = @permitted
      end
    enddelete(key, &block)
Deletes a key-value pair from Parameters and returns the value. If key is not found, returns nil (or, with optional code block, yields key and returns the result). Cf. #extract!, which returns the corresponding ActionController::Parameters object.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 698
    def delete(key, &block)
      convert_value_to_parameters(@parameters.delete(key, &block))
    enddig(*keys)
Extracts the nested parameter from the given keys by calling dig at each step. Returns nil if any intermediate step is nil.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(foo: { bar: { baz: 1 } })
params.dig(:foo, :bar, :baz) # => 1
params.dig(:foo, :zot, :xyz) # => nil
params2 = ActionController::Parameters.new(foo: [10, 11, 12])
params2.dig(:foo, 1) # => 11
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 614
    def dig(*keys)
      convert_hashes_to_parameters(keys.first, @parameters[keys.first])
      @parameters.dig(*keys)
    endeach_key()
Calls block once for each key in the parameters, passing the key. If no block is given, an enumerator is returned instead.
each_pair(&block)
Convert all hashes in values into parameters, then yield each pair in the same way as Hash#each_pair.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 343
    def each_pair(&block)
      @parameters.each_pair do |key, value|
        yield [key, convert_hashes_to_parameters(key, value)]
      end
      self
    endeach_value(&block)
Convert all hashes in values into parameters, then yield each value in the same way as Hash#each_value.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 354
    def each_value(&block)
      @parameters.each_pair do |key, value|
        yield convert_hashes_to_parameters(key, value)
      end
      self
    endexcept(*keys)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters instance that filters out the given keys.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: 1, b: 2, c: 3)
params.except(:a, :b) # => <ActionController::Parameters {"c"=>3} permitted: false>
params.except(:d)     # => <ActionController::Parameters {"a"=>1, "b"=>2, "c"=>3} permitted: false>
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 643
    def except(*keys)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(@parameters.except(*keys))
    endextract!(*keys)
Removes and returns the key/value pairs matching the given keys.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: 1, b: 2, c: 3)
params.extract!(:a, :b) # => <ActionController::Parameters {"a"=>1, "b"=>2} permitted: false>
params                  # => <ActionController::Parameters {"c"=>3} permitted: false>
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 652
    def extract!(*keys)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(@parameters.extract!(*keys))
    endfetch(key, *args)
Returns a parameter for the given key. If the key can't be found, there are several options: With no other arguments, it will raise an ActionController::ParameterMissing error; if a second argument is given, then that is returned (converted to an instance of ActionController::Parameters if possible); if a block is given, then that will be run and its result returned.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(person: { name: "Francesco" })
params.fetch(:person)               # => <ActionController::Parameters {"name"=>"Francesco"} permitted: false>
params.fetch(:none)                 # => ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: none
params.fetch(:none, {})             # => <ActionController::Parameters {} permitted: false>
params.fetch(:none, "Francesco")    # => "Francesco"
params.fetch(:none) { "Francesco" } # => "Francesco"
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 593
    def fetch(key, *args)
      convert_value_to_parameters(
        @parameters.fetch(key) {
          if block_given?
            yield
          else
            args.fetch(0) { raise ActionController::ParameterMissing.new(key) }
          end
        }
      )
    endhas_value?(value)
Returns true if the given value is present for some key in the parameters.
inspect()
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 773
    def inspect
      "<#{self.class} #{@parameters} permitted: #{@permitted}>"
    endmerge(other_hash)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters with all keys from other_hash merged into current hash.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 736
    def merge(other_hash)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(
        @parameters.merge(other_hash.to_h)
      )
    endmerge!(other_hash)
Returns current ActionController::Parameters instance with other_hash merged into current hash.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 744
    def merge!(other_hash)
      @parameters.merge!(other_hash.to_h)
      self
    endpermit(*filters)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters instance that includes only the given filters and sets the permitted attribute for the object to true. This is useful for limiting which attributes should be allowed for mass updating.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(user: { name: "Francesco", age: 22, role: "admin" })
permitted = params.require(:user).permit(:name, :age)
permitted.permitted?      # => true
permitted.has_key?(:name) # => true
permitted.has_key?(:age)  # => true
permitted.has_key?(:role) # => false
Only permitted scalars pass the filter. For example, given
params.permit(:name)
:name passes if it is a key of params whose associated value is of type String, Symbol, NilClass, Numeric, TrueClass, FalseClass, Date, Time, DateTime, StringIO, IO, ActionDispatch::Http::UploadedFile or Rack::Test::UploadedFile. Otherwise, the key :name is filtered out.
You may declare that the parameter should be an array of permitted scalars by mapping it to an empty array:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(tags: ["rails", "parameters"])
params.permit(tags: [])
Sometimes it is not possible or convenient to declare the valid keys of a hash parameter or its internal structure. Just map to an empty hash:
params.permit(preferences: {})
Be careful because this opens the door to arbitrary input. In this case, permit ensures values in the returned structure are permitted scalars and filters out anything else.
You can also use permit on nested parameters, like:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  person: {
    name: "Francesco",
    age:  22,
    pets: [{
      name: "Purplish",
      category: "dogs"
    }]
  }
})
permitted = params.permit(person: [ :name, { pets: :name } ])
permitted.permitted?                    # => true
permitted[:person][:name]               # => "Francesco"
permitted[:person][:age]                # => nil
permitted[:person][:pets][0][:name]     # => "Purplish"
permitted[:person][:pets][0][:category] # => nil
Note that if you use permit in a key that points to a hash, it won't allow all the hash. You also need to specify which attributes inside the hash should be permitted.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  person: {
    contact: {
      email: "none@test.com",
      phone: "555-1234"
    }
  }
})
params.require(:person).permit(:contact)
# => <ActionController::Parameters {} permitted: true>
params.require(:person).permit(contact: :phone)
# => <ActionController::Parameters {"contact"=><ActionController::Parameters {"phone"=>"555-1234"} permitted: true>} permitted: true>
params.require(:person).permit(contact: [ :email, :phone ])
# => <ActionController::Parameters {"contact"=><ActionController::Parameters {"email"=>"none@test.com", "phone"=>"555-1234"} permitted: true>} permitted: true>
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 547
    def permit(*filters)
      params = self.class.new
      filters.flatten.each do |filter|
        case filter
        when Symbol, String
          permitted_scalar_filter(params, filter)
        when Hash
          hash_filter(params, filter)
        end
      end
      unpermitted_parameters!(params) if self.class.action_on_unpermitted_parameters
      params.permit!
    endpermit!()
Sets the permitted attribute to true. This can be used to pass mass assignment. Returns self.
class Person < ActiveRecord::Base
end
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(name: "Francesco")
params.permitted?  # => false
Person.new(params) # => ActiveModel::ForbiddenAttributesError
params.permit!
params.permitted?  # => true
Person.new(params) # => #<Person id: nil, name: "Francesco">
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 395
    def permit!
      each_pair do |key, value|
        Array.wrap(value).flatten.each do |v|
          v.permit! if v.respond_to? :permit!
        end
      end
      @permitted = true
      self
    endpermitted?()
Returns true if the parameter is permitted, false otherwise.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new
params.permitted? # => false
params.permit!
params.permitted? # => true
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 379
    def permitted?
      @permitted
    endreject(&block)
Returns a new instance of ActionController::Parameters with items that the block evaluates to true removed.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 717
    def reject(&block)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(@parameters.reject(&block))
    endreject!(&block)
Removes items that the block evaluates to true and returns self.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 722
    def reject!(&block)
      @parameters.reject!(&block)
      self
    endrequire(key)
This method accepts both a single key and an array of keys.
When passed a single key, if it exists and its associated value is either present or the singleton false, returns said value:
ActionController::Parameters.new(person: { name: "Francesco" }).require(:person)
# => <ActionController::Parameters {"name"=>"Francesco"} permitted: false>
Otherwise raises ActionController::ParameterMissing:
ActionController::Parameters.new.require(:person)
# ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: person
ActionController::Parameters.new(person: nil).require(:person)
# ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: person
ActionController::Parameters.new(person: "\t").require(:person)
# ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: person
ActionController::Parameters.new(person: {}).require(:person)
# ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: person
When given an array of keys, the method tries to require each one of them in order. If it succeeds, an array with the respective return values is returned:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(user: { ... }, profile: { ... })
user_params, profile_params = params.require([:user, :profile])
Otherwise, the method re-raises the first exception found:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(user: {}, profile: {})
user_params, profile_params = params.require([:user, :profile])
# ActionController::ParameterMissing: param is missing or the value is empty: user
Technically this method can be used to fetch terminal values:
# CAREFUL
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(person: { name: "Finn" })
name = params.require(:person).require(:name) # CAREFUL
but take into account that at some point those ones have to be permitted:
def person_params
  params.require(:person).permit(:name).tap do |person_params|
    person_params.require(:name) # SAFER
  end
end
for example.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 456
    def require(key)
      return key.map { |k| require(k) } if key.is_a?(Array)
      value = self[key]
      if value.present? || value == false
        value
      else
        raise ParameterMissing.new(key)
      end
    endreverse_merge(other_hash)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters with all keys from current hash merged into other_hash.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 751
    def reverse_merge(other_hash)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(
        other_hash.to_h.merge(@parameters)
      )
    endreverse_merge!(other_hash)
Returns current ActionController::Parameters instance with current hash merged into other_hash.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 760
    def reverse_merge!(other_hash)
      @parameters.merge!(other_hash.to_h) { |key, left, right| left }
      self
    endselect(&block)
Returns a new instance of ActionController::Parameters with only items that the block evaluates to true.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 704
    def select(&block)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(@parameters.select(&block))
    endselect!(&block)
Equivalent to Hash#keep_if, but returns nil if no changes were made.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 709
    def select!(&block)
      @parameters.select!(&block)
      self
    endslice(*keys)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters instance that includes only the given keys. If the given keys don't exist, returns an empty hash.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: 1, b: 2, c: 3)
params.slice(:a, :b) # => <ActionController::Parameters {"a"=>1, "b"=>2} permitted: false>
params.slice(:d)     # => <ActionController::Parameters {} permitted: false>
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 626
    def slice(*keys)
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(@parameters.slice(*keys))
    endslice!(*keys)
Returns current ActionController::Parameters instance which contains only the given keys.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 632
    def slice!(*keys)
      @parameters.slice!(*keys)
      self
    endto_h()
Returns a safe ActiveSupport::HashWithIndifferentAccess representation of the parameters with all unpermitted keys removed.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  name: "Senjougahara Hitagi",
  oddity: "Heavy stone crab"
})
params.to_h
# => ActionController::UnfilteredParameters: unable to convert unpermitted parameters to hash
safe_params = params.permit(:name)
safe_params.to_h # => {"name"=>"Senjougahara Hitagi"}
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 269
    def to_h
      if permitted?
        convert_parameters_to_hashes(@parameters, :to_h)
      else
        raise UnfilteredParameters
      end
    endto_hash()
Returns a safe Hash representation of the parameters with all unpermitted keys removed.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  name: "Senjougahara Hitagi",
  oddity: "Heavy stone crab"
})
params.to_hash
# => ActionController::UnfilteredParameters: unable to convert unpermitted parameters to hash
safe_params = params.permit(:name)
safe_params.to_hash # => {"name"=>"Senjougahara Hitagi"}
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 289
    def to_hash
      to_h.to_hash
    endto_query(*args)
Returns a string representation of the receiver suitable for use as a URL query string:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  name: "David",
  nationality: "Danish"
})
params.to_query
# => ActionController::UnfilteredParameters: unable to convert unpermitted parameters to hash
safe_params = params.permit(:name, :nationality)
safe_params.to_query
# => "name=David&nationality=Danish"
An optional namespace can be passed to enclose key names:
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  name: "David",
  nationality: "Danish"
})
safe_params = params.permit(:name, :nationality)
safe_params.to_query("user")
# => "user%5Bname%5D=David&user%5Bnationality%5D=Danish"
The string pairs βkey=valueβ that conform the query string are sorted lexicographically in ascending order.
This method is also aliased as to_param.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 321
    def to_query(*args)
      to_h.to_query(*args)
    endto_unsafe_h()
Returns an unsafe, unfiltered ActiveSupport::HashWithIndifferentAccess representation of the parameters.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new({
  name: "Senjougahara Hitagi",
  oddity: "Heavy stone crab"
})
params.to_unsafe_h
# => {"name"=>"Senjougahara Hitagi", "oddity" => "Heavy stone crab"}
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 336
    def to_unsafe_h
      convert_parameters_to_hashes(@parameters, :to_unsafe_h)
    endtransform_keys(&block)
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters instance with the results of running block once for every key. The values are unchanged.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 679
    def transform_keys(&block)
      return to_enum(:transform_keys) unless block_given?
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(
        @parameters.transform_keys(&block)
      )
    endtransform_keys!(&block)
Performs keys transformation and returns the altered ActionController::Parameters instance.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 688
    def transform_keys!(&block)
      return to_enum(:transform_keys!) unless block_given?
      @parameters.transform_keys!(&block)
      self
    endtransform_values()
Returns a new ActionController::Parameters with the results of running block once for every value. The keys are unchanged.
params = ActionController::Parameters.new(a: 1, b: 2, c: 3)
params.transform_values { |x| x * 2 }
# => <ActionController::Parameters {"a"=>2, "b"=>4, "c"=>6} permitted: false>
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 662
    def transform_values
      return to_enum(:transform_values) unless block_given?
      new_instance_with_inherited_permitted_status(
        @parameters.transform_values { |v| yield convert_value_to_parameters(v) }
      )
    endtransform_values!()
Performs values transformation and returns the altered ActionController::Parameters instance.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 671
    def transform_values!
      return to_enum(:transform_values!) unless block_given?
      @parameters.transform_values! { |v| yield convert_value_to_parameters(v) }
      self
    endvalue?(value)
Returns true if the given value is present for some key in the parameters.
values()
Returns a new array of the values of the parameters.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 214
    delegate :keys, :key?, :has_key?, :values, :has_value?, :value?, :empty?, :include?,
      :as_json, :to_s, :each_key, to: :@parameters
values_at(*keys)
Returns values that were assigned to the given keys. Note that all the Hash objects will be converted to ActionController::Parameters.
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 730
    def values_at(*keys)
      convert_value_to_parameters(@parameters.values_at(*keys))
    endInstance Protected methods
fields_for_style?()
π Source code
# File actionpack/lib/action_controller/metal/strong_parameters.rb, line 816
      def fields_for_style?
        @parameters.all? { |k, v| k =~ /\A-?\d+\z/ && (v.is_a?(Hash) || v.is_a?(Parameters)) }
      end