3 Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Intro - Catalyst Tutorial - Part 1: Introduction
8 This is B<Part 2 of 10> for the Catalyst tutorial.
10 L<Tutorial Overview|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial>
20 L<Catalyst Basics|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::CatalystBasics>
24 L<More Catalyst Basics|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::MoreCatalystBasics>
28 L<Basic CRUD|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::BasicCRUD>
32 L<Authentication|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Authentication>
36 L<Authorization|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Authorization>
40 L<Debugging|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Debugging>
44 L<Testing|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Testing>
48 L<Advanced CRUD|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::AdvancedCRUD>
52 L<Appendices|Catalyst::Manual::Tutorial::Appendices>
59 This tutorial provides a multipart introduction to the Catalyst web
60 framework. It seeks to provide a rapid overview of many of its most
61 commonly used features. The focus is on the real-world best practices
62 required in the construction of nearly all Catalyst applications.
64 Although the primary target of the tutorial is users new to the Catalyst
65 framework, experienced users may wish to review specific sections (for
66 example, how to use DBIC for their model classes, how to add
67 authentication and authorization to an existing application, or form
70 You can obtain the code for all the tutorial examples from the
71 catalyst subversion repository by issuing the command:
73 svn co http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/repos/Catalyst/tags/examples/Tutorial/MyApp/5.7/ CatalystTutorial
75 This will download the current code for each tutorial chapter in the
76 CatalystTutorial directory. Each example application directory has
77 the same name as the tutorial chapter.
79 B<These reference implementations are provided so that when you follow
80 the tutorial, you can use the code from the subversion repository to
81 ensure that your system is set up correctly, and that you have not
82 inadvertently made any typographic errors, or accidentally skipped
83 part of the tutorial.>
85 B<NOTE: You can use any perl-supported OS and environment to run
86 Catalyst.> It should make little or no difference to Catalyst's
87 operation, but this tutorial has been written using Ubuntu 8.04
88 because that represents a quick and easy for most people to try out
89 Catalyst with virtually zero setup time and hassles. See the Catalyst
90 installation section below for more information.
92 If you're reading this manual online, you can download the example
93 program and all the necessary dependencies to your local machine by
94 installing the C<Task::Catalyst::Tutorial> distribution from CPAN:
96 cpan Task::Catalyst::Tutorial
98 This will also test to make sure the dependencies are working. If you
99 have trouble installing these, please ask for help on the #catalyst
100 IRC channel, or the Catalyst mailing list.
102 Subjects covered by the tutorial include:
108 A simple application that lists and adds books.
112 The use of L<DBIx::Class|DBIx::Class> (DBIC) for the model.
116 How to write CRUD (Create, Read, Update, and Delete) operations in
121 Authentication ("auth").
125 Role-based authorization ("authz").
129 Attempts to provide an example showing current (5.7XXX) Catalyst
130 practices. For example, the use of
131 L<Catalyst::Action::RenderView|Catalyst::Action::RenderView>,
132 DBIC, L<Catalyst::Plugin::ConfigLoader|Catalyst::Plugin::ConfigLoader>
133 with C<myapp.conf>, the use of C<lib/MyApp/Controller/Root.pm>
134 vs. C<lib/MyApp.pm>, etc.
138 The use of Template Toolkit (TT) and the
139 L<Catalyst::Helper::View::TTSite|Catalyst::Helper::View::TTSite>
144 Useful techniques for troubleshooting and debugging Catalyst
149 The use of SQLite as a database (with code also provided for MySQL and
154 The use of L<HTML::FormFu|HTML::FormFu> for automated form processing
159 This tutorial makes the learning process its main priority. For
160 example, the level of comments in the code found here would likely be
161 considered excessive in a "normal project." Because of their contextual
162 value, this tutorial will generally favor inline comments over a
163 separate discussion in the text. It also deliberately tries to
164 demonstrate multiple approaches to various features (in general, you
165 should try to be as consistent as possible with your own production
168 Furthermore, this tutorial tries to minimize the number of controllers,
169 models, TT templates, and database tables. Although this does result in
170 things being a bit contrived at times, the concepts should be applicable
171 to more complex environments. More complete and complicated example
172 applications can be found in the C<examples> area of the Catalyst
173 Subversion repository at
174 L<http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/repos/Catalyst/trunk/examples/>.
176 B<Note:> There are a variety of other introductory materials available
177 through the Catalyst web site and at
178 L<http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/wiki/UserIntroductions> and
179 L<http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/>.
181 =head1 VERSIONS AND CONVENTIONS USED IN THIS TUTORIAL
183 This tutorial was built using the following resources. Please note that
184 you may need to make adjustments for different environments and
191 Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron
199 Catalyst::Devel v1.03
209 The plugins used in this tutorial all have sufficiently stable APIs that
210 you shouldn't need to worry about versions. However, there could be
211 cases where the tutorial is affected by what version of plugins you
212 use. This tutorial has been tested against the following set of plugins:
218 Catalyst::Plugin::Authentication -- v0.10002
222 Catalyst::Plugin::Authentication::Store::DBIC -- v0.09
226 Catalyst::Plugin::Authorization::ACL -- v0.08
230 Catalyst::Plugin::Authorization::Roles -- v0.05
234 Catalyst::Plugin::ConfigLoader -- v0.17
238 Catalyst::Plugin::Session -- v0.18
242 Catalyst::Plugin::Session::State::Cookie -- v0.08
246 Catalyst::Plugin::Session::Store::FastMmap -- v0.03
250 Catalyst::Plugin::StackTrace -- v0.06
254 Catalyst::Plugin::Static::Simple -- v0.20
260 Since the web browser is being used on the same box where Perl and the
261 Catalyst development server is running, the URL of
262 C<http://localhost:3000> will be used (the Catalyst development server
263 defaults to port 3000). If you are running Perl on a different box than
264 where your web browser is located (or using a different port number via
265 the C<-p> I<port_number> option to the development server), then you
266 will need to update the URL you use accordingly.
270 Depending on the web browser you are using, you might need to hit
271 C<Shift+Reload> to pull a fresh page when testing your application at
272 various points. Also, the C<-k> keepalive option to the development
273 server can be necessary with some browsers (especially Internet
278 =head1 CATALYST INSTALLATION
280 If approach in the wrong manner, it can be a daunting tasks to get
281 Catalyst initially installed. Although a compelling strength of
282 Catalyst is that it makes use of many of the modules in the
283 vast repository that is CPAN, this can complicate the installation
284 process. However, there are a growing number of methods
285 that can dramatically ease this undertaking. Of these, the following
286 are likely to be applicable to the largest number of potential new
295 Given the popularity of Ubuntu and it's ease of use, Ubuntu can be
296 a great way for newcomers to experiment with Catalyst. Because it
297 is a "live CD," you can simply boot from the CD, run a few commands,
298 and you should have a fully functional environment in which to do
299 this tutorial in a matter of minutes.
305 Download Ubuntu 8.04 (aka, Hardy Heron) Desktop edition and boot from
306 the CD and/or image file, select your language, and then "Try Ubuntu
307 without any changes to your computer."
311 Open a terminal session (click "Applications" in the upper-left
312 corner, then "Accessories," then "Terminal").
316 Add the 'universe' repositories:
318 sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list
320 And remove the comments from the lines under the comments about the
321 'universe' repositories.
328 sudo apt-get install libdbd-sqlite3-perl libcatalyst-perl libcatalyst-modules-perl libconfig-general-perl
330 Accept all of the dependencies. Done.
332 NOTE: If you are low on disk space after the above commands (use C<df />
333 to tell), you can free up some space with
334 C<sudo rm /var/cache/apt/archives/*.deb> (the Live CD uses memory for
335 disk space, so having a decent amount of memory will help). And,
336 while the instructions above mention the Live CD because that makes it
337 easy for people new to Linux, you can obviously also use one of the
338 options to install Ubuntu on your drive.
344 Matt Trout's C<cat-install>
346 Available at L<http://www.shadowcatsystems.co.uk/static/cat-install>,
347 C<cat-install> can be a quick and painless way to get Catalyst up and
348 running. Just download the script from the link above and type C<perl
353 Chris Laco's CatInABox
355 Download the tarball from
356 L<http://handelframework.com/downloads/CatInABox.tar.gz> and unpack it
357 on your machine. Depending on your OS platform, either run C<start.bat>
362 Pre-Built VMWare Images
364 Under the VMWare community program, work is ongoing to develop a number
365 of VMWare images where an entire Catalyst development environment has
366 already been installed, complete with database engines and a full
367 complement of Catalyst plugins.
371 For additional information and recommendations on Catalyst installation,
373 L<Catalyst::Manual::Installation|Catalyst::Manual::Installation>.
375 B<NOTE:> Step-by-step instructions to replicate the environment on
376 which this tutorial was developed can be found at
377 L<Catalyst::Manual::Installation::CentOS4|Catalyst::Manual::Installation::CentOS4>.
378 Using these instructions, you should be able to build a complete CentOS
379 4.X server with Catalyst and all the plugins required to run this
384 This tutorial will primarily focus on SQLite because of its simplicity
385 of installation and use; however, modifications in the script required
386 to support MySQL and PostgreSQL will be presented in Appendix 2.
388 B<Note:> One of the advantages of the MVC design patterns is that
389 applications become much more database independent. As such, you will
390 notice that only the C<.sql> files used to initialize the database
391 change between database systems: the Catalyst code generally remains the
394 =head1 WHERE TO GET WORKING CODE
396 Each part of the tutorial has complete code available in the main
397 Catalyst Subversion repository (see the note at the beginning of each
398 part for the appropriate svn command to use). Additionally, the final
399 code is available as a ready-to-run tarball at
400 L<http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/repos/Catalyst/trunk/examples/Tutorial/Final_Tarball/MyApp.tgz>.
402 B<NOTE:> You can run the test cases for the final code with the following
405 wget http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/repos/Catalyst/trunk/examples/Tutorial/Final_Tarball/MyApp.tgz
408 CATALYST_DEBUG=0 prove --lib lib t
413 Kennedy Clark, C<hkclark@gmail.com>
415 Please report any errors, issues or suggestions to the author. The
416 most recent version of the Catalyst Tutorial can be found at
417 L<http://dev.catalyst.perl.org/repos/Catalyst/trunk/Catalyst-Manual/lib/Catalyst/Manual/Tutorial/>.
419 Copyright 2006-2008, Kennedy Clark, under Creative Commons License
420 (L<http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/>).