se7enxweb / expquery-translator
Galach search query parser and node filter for Exponential CMS. Ported from netgen/query-translator.
Package info
github.com/se7enxweb/expquery_translator
Type:ezpublish-legacy-extension
pkg:composer/se7enxweb/expquery-translator
Requires
- php: ^8.1 || ^8.2 || ^8.3 || ^8.4
README
General description
Exponential Query Translator (extension name: expquery_translator) is a Galach
search query parser and node filter for Exponential CMS (eZ Publish Legacy).
It is a port of the well-known netgen/query-translator library into the
legacy extension ecosystem and provides the following capabilities:
- Galach query parsing - Parse rich, human-friendly search strings (words, phrases, tags, users, exclusions, boolean operators, domain prefixes) into structured data your PHP code can act on.
- Node filtering - Filter arrays of
eZContentObjectTreeNodeobjects with a single search string, matching against node name, class identifier and class name. - Fetch parameter building - Translate
#tagterms directly intoeZContentObjectTreeNode::subTreeByNodeIDclass-filter parameters so the database narrows the result set before PHP post-filtering runs. - Zero dependencies - The bundled parser library is pure PHP with no Symfony or Doctrine requirements; it drops into any legacy installation.
- Layouts and admin integration - Ready-made patterns for Exponential Layouts block handlers, manual collections, admin content lists and custom module views with search.
What is included:
lib/- the upstreamquery-translatorlibrary (Galach language,QueryTranslator\namespace). It is pure PHP and has no Symfony/Doctrine dependencies; it is autoloaded through a Composer PSR-4 mapping in the project root.classes/expquerytranslator.php- a legacy adapter that turns Galach search strings into usableeZContentObjectTreeNodefilters andeZContentObjectTreeNode::subTreeByNodeIDparameters.autoloads/expquery_translator_autoload.php- class map for the adapter.
The lib/ directory is the upstream netgen/query-translator library,
unmodified. Only the expQueryTranslator adapter in classes/ is custom.
Tags (#tag) are mapped to content class identifiers because that is the
most common filtering need in this legacy stack.
Features
Exponential Query Translator provides the following features in detail:
Key classes
| Class | File | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
expQueryTranslator |
classes/expquerytranslator.php |
Adapter: analyze(), filterNodes(), buildSubtreeParams() |
QueryTranslator\Languages\Galach\Tokenizer |
lib/Languages/Galach/Tokenizer.php |
Upstream Galach tokenizer |
QueryTranslator\Languages\Galach\TokenExtractor\Full |
lib/Languages/Galach/TokenExtractor/Full.php |
Full token extractor (words, phrases, tags, users, operators) |
Galach syntax support
The Full token extractor supports the complete Galach search language:
foo- a word"hello world"- a phrase#tag- a tag (mapped to a content class identifier in the adapter)@user- a user-fooorNOT foo- excluded term+fooor justfoo- required termfoo AND bar,foo OR bar- operators are tokenized; the adapter currently treats all listed terms as required by defaulttitle:foo- domain-prefixed term; the adapter extracts the word and matches it against node name, class identifier and class name
Adapter behaviour
analyze()breaks a query string into structuredinclude/exclude/tags/users/rawbuckets. An empty or whitespace-only query returns the same structure with empty buckets, so callers do not need a separate guard.filterNodes()matches nodes on name, class identifier and class name.includeterms are AND-ed,excludeterms drop a node on match, and#tagsmust equal the node's class identifier. Entries that are noteZContentObjectTreeNodeinstances are skipped. If the query yields no terms at all, the input array is returned unchanged.buildSubtreeParams()turns#tagsintoClassFilterType/ClassFilterArrayentries on top of your base fetch parameters. Words and phrases do not change the fetch parameters - apply them afterwards withfilterNodes().
Extensibility
- The adapter exposes protected hook methods (
getTokenValue(),nodeMatches()) designed for subclassing. - The full upstream library (tokenizer, token extractors, the
Parsersyntax tree builder) remains available for advanced boolean logic and grouping.
Version
- The current version of Exponential Query Translator is 1.0.0
- Last Major update: July 30, 2026
Copyright
- Exponential Query Translator is copyright 1998 - 2026 7x
- See: LICENSE.md for more information on the terms of the copyright and license
License
Exponential Query Translator is licensed under the GNU General Public License.
The complete license agreement is included in the LICENSE.md file.
Exponential Query Translator is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 2 of the License or at your option a later version.
Exponential Query Translator is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
The GNU GPL gives you the right to use, modify and redistribute Exponential Query Translator under certain conditions. The GNU GPL license is distributed with the software, see the file LICENSE.md.
It is also available at https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.txt
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with Exponential Query Translator in LICENSE.md. If not, see https://www.gnu.org/licenses/.
Using Exponential Query Translator under the terms of the GNU GPL is free (as in freedom).
For more information or questions please contact info@se7enx.com
Requirements
The following requirements exists for using Exponential Query Translator extension:
Exponential CMS / eZ Publish Legacy version
- Make sure you use Exponential 6 (eZ Publish Legacy) or higher.
PHP version
- Make sure you have PHP 8.1 or higher.
Composer autoloader mapping
- The project root Composer autoloader must map the
QueryTranslator\namespace toextension/expquery_translator/lib(PSR-4) so the upstream library classes resolve.
Installation
Installation is the standard legacy extension procedure: place the extension
in extension/expquery_translator, activate it via [ExtensionSettings]
ActiveExtensions[] (or ActiveAccessExtensions[] for a single siteaccess),
regenerate the extension autoloads, verify the Composer PSR-4 mapping and
clear all caches.
See the complete step-by-step instructions in INSTALL.md.
Usage
The adapter is a single class you can instantiate anywhere the kernel is bootstrapped - modules, block handlers, cronjobs and CLI scripts:
$qt = new expQueryTranslator(); $analysis = $qt->analyze( 'foo -bar #folder "new york"' ); $filtered = $qt->filterNodes( $nodes, 'news -old #article' ); $params = $qt->buildSubtreeParams( '#article', array( 'Limit' => 25 ) );
analyze() returns structured buckets:
// $analysis['include'] => array( 'foo', 'new york' ) // $analysis['exclude'] => array( 'bar' ) // $analysis['tags'] => array( 'folder' ) // $analysis['users'] => array() // $analysis['raw'] => 'foo -bar #folder "new york"'
The recommended pattern is fetch-then-filter: narrow the database fetch with
buildSubtreeParams() (tags become class filters), then post-filter the
words and phrases with filterNodes():
$params = $qt->buildSubtreeParams( $query, array( 'Limit' => 10, 'Offset' => 0, 'SortBy' => array( 'name', true ), ) ); $nodes = eZContentObjectTreeNode::subTreeByNodeID( $params, $parentNodeId ); $nodes = $qt->filterNodes( $nodes, $query );
For full Galach parsing beyond what the adapter extracts, use the upstream library directly:
use QueryTranslator\Languages\Galach\Tokenizer; use QueryTranslator\Languages\Galach\TokenExtractor\Full; $tokenizer = new Tokenizer( new Full() ); $sequence = $tokenizer->tokenize( 'foo -bar #baz "hello world"' );
The QueryTranslator\Languages\Galach\Parser class (also in lib/) builds a
full syntax tree when boolean logic and grouping are needed.
See doc/USAGE.md for verified, copy-ready examples - Layouts
block handlers, manual collection filtering, admin list filtering, module
views with search - and for the customization guide covering all three
layers: the settings layer (this extension ships no INI file; tunables travel
as method arguments), the template layer (no templates shipped; presentation
is owned by the caller) and the PHP layer (safe subclassing points
getTokenValue() and nodeMatches(), and swapping the token extractor).
Additional copy-and-paste snippets are collected in EXAMPLES.md.
Documentation
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| INSTALL.md | Activation, Composer autoload setup and verification |
| EXAMPLES.md | Extended copy-and-paste code snippets |
| doc/USAGE.md | Verified code examples plus the settings / template / PHP customization layers |
| doc/FAQ.md | Answers to the most common questions |
| doc/TODO.md | Known gaps and planned improvements |
| doc/SUPPORT.md | How and where to get help |
| LICENSE.md | The complete GNU General Public License agreement |
Troubleshooting
Read the FAQ
- Some problems are more common than others. The most common ones are listed in the doc/FAQ.md.
Use our support systems
- If you have any questions not handled by this document or the FAQ you can reach us through se7enx.com
- If you find a bug or defect, please report it to the Exponential Query Translator: Issue Tracker