To create a RESTful API, first use yii\rest\Controller or its subclass as the controller base class, then configure URL rules to implement a concise API endpoint, then customize the operations as needed and ensure the response format is consistent. 1. Select the appropriate controller base class, such as yii\rest\ActiveController, to automatically provide standard operations; 2. Configure yii\rest\UrlRule in the urlManager to map resource routing; 3. Custom operation methods return data arrays, and Yii will be automatically converted to JSON; 4. Unify the response structure, such as wrapping in an object containing status and data fields to improve API consistency and ease of use.

Creating RESTful APIs with Yii controllers is straightforward once you understand how Yii's controller and model system works. The key lies in structuring your controllers properly, using the right components, and formatting responses correctly.

1. Use yii\rest\Controller or its subclasses

The first step is to make sure you're using the right base controller class. Yii provides a dedicated set of controller classes for building RESTful APIs. The most common one is yii\rest\Controller .

 use yii\rest\Controller;

class UserController extends Controller
{
    // Your actions go here
}

This base class comes with built-in support for JSON formatting, authentication, and data serialization. If you're working with ActiveRecord models, consider extending yii\rest\ActiveController , which gives you index, view, create, update, and delete actions out of the box — just by setting the $modelClass .

2. Configure URL rules for clean API endpoints

RESTful URLs are usually clean and resource-based. To map these URLs to your controllers, configure the urlManager component in your config file (like config/web.php ):

 'urlManager' => [
    'enablePrettyUrl' => true,
    'enableStrictParsing' => true,
    'showScriptName' => false,
    'rules' => [
        ['class' => 'yii\rest\UrlRule', 'controller' => 'user'],
    ],
]

This setup will automatically map:

• GET /users → indexAction
• GET /users/123 → viewAction
• POST /users → createAction
• And so on…

You can also customize the pluralization or add extra actions if needed.

3. Customize actions as needed

If you're not using ActiveController , you'll need to define your own actions. But even then, Yii makes it easy via action methods that return data arrays:

 public function actionIndex()
{
    $users = User::find()->all();
    return $users;
}

Yii automatically converts this into a JSON response. You don't have to manually call json_encode() or handle headers unless you want to customize them.

Also, remember:

• Use status codes appropriately ( throw new \yii\web\HttpException(404, 'Not Found') )
• Handle user authentication with behaviors() if required
• Return consistent response structures

4. Format responses consistently

While Yii handles JSON output by default, you might want to wrap your responses in a standard format for consistency across all API endpoints.

For example, instead of returning raw data like:

 {
  "id": 1,
  "name": "John"
}

You could return:

 {
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "id": 1,
    "name": "John"
  }
}

To do this, use a wrapper method or override serializeData() in a custom controller class.

A simple way:

 protected function verbs()
{
    Return [
        'index' => ['GET'],
    ];
}

public function actionIndex()
{
    $data = User::find()->all();
    return ['status' => 'success', 'data' => $data];
}

That way, no matter what kind of data you return from an action, it follows a predictable structure.

Basically, creating RESTful APIs in Yii involves choosing the right controller type, configuring clean URLs, defining or customizing actions, and ensuring consistent output. It's not complicated, but getting the structure right early helps avoid messy refactoring later.

The above is the detailed content of How do I create RESTful APIs using Yii controllers?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!