How do I use a variable declared in a ##_helper file?

Question

I'm trying to execute a before save definition like so in my Route.rb file. (@current_user.email is causing the error)

      class Route < ActiveRecord::Base

  before_save { |route| route.created_by = @current_user.email }

end

But I get this error,

undefined method `email' for nil:NilClass

But I can use it just fine in my _header.html.erb Like so:

<a class="btn btn-primary dropdown-toggle" data-toggle="dropdown" href="#">
    <%= @current_user.email %>
    <span class="caret"></span>

@current_user is described in my sessions_helper like so:

module SessionsHelper

    def sign_in(user)
        cookies.permanent[:remember_token] = user.remember_token
        current_user = user
    end

    def signed_in?
        !current_user.nil?
    end

    def current_user=(user)
        @current_user
    end

    def current_user
        @current_user ||= User.find_by_remember_token(cookies[:remember_token])
    end

    def current_user?(user)
        user == current_user
    end

    def sign_out
        current_user = nil
        cookies.delete(:remember_token)
    end
end

Why am I not able to execute this before_save without getting that error? Thanks guys.

Do you get the same errors if you access `@current_user` via the `current_user` method (`self.created_by = current_user.email` without the `@`)? — Paul Fioravanti, Mar 12 '13 at 03:02
You might want to try this gem? https://github.com/house9/clerk - sets creator and updater on models automatically — house9, Mar 12 '13 at 06:15

score 0 · Answer 1 · edited May 23 '17 at 12:04

0

Further to my comment, your SessionsHelper looks similar to that of The Rails Tutorial. Given that, I think you have some issues with your current_user and current_user= methods as they seem to be doing the opposite thing. They should probably be:

def current_user
  @current_user ||= User.find_by_remember_token(cookies[:remember_token])
end

def current_user=(user)
  @current_user = user
end

Edit

The model should not know about controller or helper methods, so you might want to set @route.created_by = current_user.email somewhere in the relevant controller before you save the object.

edited May 23 '17 at 12:04

Community

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answered Mar 12 '13 at 03:08

Paul Fioravanti

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Yeah it is the same one from the rails tutorial, but it still isn't working I did the fixes – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:09
I don't get why I can use it in my `_header.html.erb` just fine but not in my Route.rb file – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:11
Have you added `include SessionsHelper` to the `ApplicationController`? – Paul Fioravanti Mar 12 '13 at 03:11
Yes I did, `include SessionsHelper` – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:12
I tried changing it to `before_save { |route| route.created_by = @current_user.email }` but still nothing – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:14
You probably need to access `@current_user` via the helper methods `current_user` and `current_user=` rather than directly by calling `@current_user` or `@current_user = ...`. – Paul Fioravanti Mar 12 '13 at 03:16
Nope still `undefined method `email' for nil:NilClass` – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:18
Strange. Is your app open source? If so, do you have the current code on Github so that others can clone it? – Paul Fioravanti Mar 12 '13 at 03:21
let us [continue this discussion in chat](http://chat.stackoverflow.com/rooms/25990/discussion-between-xcritics-and-paul-fioravanti) – Datsik Mar 12 '13 at 03:22

How do I use a variable declared in a ##_helper file?

1 Answers1