#43484 [NEW]: call_user_func_array(): questionable pass-by-val/pass-by-ref behaviour.

From: robin_fernandes at uk dot ibm dot com Operating system: Windows PHP version: 5.3CVS-2007-12-03 (snap) PHP Bug Type: Scripting Engine problem Bug description: call_user_func_array(): questionable pass-by-val/pass-by-ref behaviour. Description: ------------ This issue was originally raised as documentation bug 43079. Raising as Scripting Engine problem as suggested by vrana at php dot net. The pass-by-value/pass-by-ref behaviour of call_user_func_array() is not intuitive (see the user contributed notes on the documentation page: http://php.net/call_user_func_array ). It appears that the way in which an argument is passed depends not on the target function signature, but rather on whether its entry in $param_arr is referenced or not. Specifically, it is possible to force an argument to be passed by reference to a function which expects a pass-by-value argument, even with call time pass by reference DISABLED in php.ini. Reproduced on php5.3 and php6 snaps on Windows. Reproduce code: --------------- <?php function byRef(&$a, &$b) { $a = 'changed.a'; $b = 'changed.b'; } function byVal($a, $b) { $a = 'changed.a'; $b = 'changed.b'; } //Currently, this forces a pass-by-ref function to take args by val: $args = array('original.a', 'original.b'); call_user_func_array('byRef', $args); var_dump($args); //Currently, this forces a pass-by-val function to take 1 arg by ref. //This works even with call-time pass-by-ref DISABLED in php.ini. $args = array('original.a', 'original.b'); $ref = &$args[0]; call_user_func_array('byVal', $args); var_dump($args); ?> Expected result: ---------------- array(2) { [0]=> string(9) "changed.a" [1]=> string(9) "changed.b" } array(2) { [0]=> &string(10) "original.a" [1]=> string(10) "original.b" } Actual result: -------------- array(2) { [0]=> string(10) "original.a" [1]=> string(10) "original.b" } array(2) { [0]=> &string(9) "changed.a" [1]=> string(10) "original.b" } -- Edit bug report at http://bugs.php.net/?id=43484&edit=1 -- Try a CVS snapshot (PHP 4.4): http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=trysnapshot44 Try a CVS snapshot (PHP 5.2): http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=trysnapshot52 Try a CVS snapshot (PHP 5.3): http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=trysnapshot53 Try a CVS snapshot (PHP 6.0): http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=trysnapshot60 Fixed in CVS: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=fixedcvs Fixed in release: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=alreadyfixed Need backtrace: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=needtrace Need Reproduce Script: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=needscript Try newer version: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=oldversion Not developer issue: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=support Expected behavior: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=notwrong Not enough info: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=notenoughinfo Submitted twice: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=submittedtwice register_globals: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=globals PHP 3 support discontinued: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=php3 Daylight Savings: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=dst IIS Stability: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=isapi Install GNU Sed: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=gnused Floating point limitations: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=float No Zend Extensions: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=nozend MySQL Configuration Error: http://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=43484&r=mysqlcfg