Search forms

A search form should put filters in the URL and keep them filled when results reload. For /articles/index?q=cakephp, the search input below displays cakephp.

templates/Articles/index.php

<?php
$form = $this->Form
    ->form()
    ->method('get')
    ->url(['controller' => 'Articles', 'action' => 'index'])
    ->valueSources(['query'])
    ->bind();
?>
<?= $form->open() ?>
<?= $form->control('q')
    ->type('search')
    ->label('Search articles') ?>
<?= $form->submit('Search') ?>
<?= $form->close() ?>

method('get') controls how the browser submits the form. valueSources(['query']) tells the form where to read values when displaying it: the current URL's query parameters. Both settings are needed for this example. Your controller reads $this->request->getQuery('q') to filter the results.

Add a filter

Place another control before the submit button:

echo $form->control('status')
    ->choices([
        'draft' => 'Draft',
        'published' => 'Published',
    ])
    ->placeholder('Any status');

Visiting ?q=cakephp&status=published fills the search input and selects “Published”. Clearing the select submits an empty value; your controller decides which filters to apply.

Provide a fallback

Use a field default when the URL has no value:

echo $form->control('q')
    ->type('search')
    ->default('cakephp');

To fall back to a bound object, use form($filters) with valueSources(['query', 'context']). Here context means the object or CakePHP context passed to form(). Sources are checked in the order supplied. The value-source reference describes all sources and precedence rules.