Which of these is more efficient in ColdFusion?
isDefined('url.myvar')
or
structKeyExists(url, 'myvar')
views:
99answers:
3
+12
A:
These days (CF8+) the difference in speed is not that great. However, structKeyExists is indeed a little faster. Here's why.
When you use isDefined, the string you pass in is searched for as a key name in several scopes. As of CF9, the list of scopes, in the order checked is: (source)
- Local (function local, UDFs and CFCs only)
- Arguments
- Thread local (inside threads only)
- Query (not a true scope, applies for variables within query loops)
- Thread
- Variables
- CGI
- CFFile
- URL
- Form
- Cookie
- Client
Even if you use the scope name with isDefined (like: if isDefined('variables.foo')) the list will still be checked in order; and if the variable local.variables.foo is defined, it will be found BEFORE variables.foo.
On the other hand, structKeyExists only searches the structure you pass it for the existence of the key name; so there are far fewer places it will have to look.
By using more explicit code (structKeyExists), not only are you gaining some performance, but your code is more readable and maintainable, in my opinion.
Adam Tuttle
2010-10-18 03:33:10
Very good! It is interesting to see how it processes the functions differently.
Bubby4j
2010-10-18 12:41:44
I also think ColdFusion needs to run an eval on the string you provide. StructKeyExists avoids a lot of work.
Aaron Greenlee
2010-10-18 14:13:11
+3
A:
Use the one which is easier to read and best shows what you're doing.
The difference between the two is incredibly small, and very likely not worth worrying about at all.
Don't waste time optimising code unless you have a proven and repeatable test case which demonstrates the slowness.
Peter Boughton
2010-10-18 11:20:53
+1 . It is definitely worthwhile to understand *how* the two functions operate. But unless you have a performance problem, writing readable code that behaves correctly is far more important IMO.
Leigh
2010-10-18 16:53:48
I completely agree, but I am still a regular user of `structKeyExists`. I find that its explicit nature makes everything crystal clear, where `isDefined` does not always, which results in more time and headaches when coming back to old code (and/or someone else's code) months or years later.
Adam Tuttle
2010-10-18 17:06:16
Though IsDefined() is more intuitively named, what you just described is still a better reason to choose one over the other,than premature concerns about performance. At least IMHO ;-) – Leigh 8 mins ago
Leigh
2010-10-18 18:05:03