Creating nodes with CCK-fields programmatically using drupal_execute() in D6

This will time out if you try using it on multiple saves at once, I prefer node_save as you can implement it into the batch_api.

Pobster

I am trying to do something like this-
1. Create a new node A
2. On submit automatically create new node B
a. Get submit values from node A
b. Process those values
c. Submit values to node B

The issue i am facing is, I can't figure out how to get the values from form A and pass them along.

Thanks for posting a complete example. I was struggling with this one for a while. Very much appreciated!

In response to the question about referencing values from one form in another, after calling drupal_execute on a node form, you can inspect the $form_state['nid'] to fetch the id of the saved node and reference that. (I think that's mentioned in the example above, but just so you know). Just do a node_load($form_state['nid']) and then grab values from that.

I must have read a couple of hundred blog entries and tried dozens of different variations which didn't work before I saw this. Thank You!

The examples you provided were a good start, but some fields I'm using are a bit more complicated and below is how I figure out the parameters to use to UPDATE any field in any node (Again after reading a lot of crap to figure this out), not sure if this is the right place for it, but I think others who find this useful will also want to be able to update nodes. So here it is:

This example is for a datestamp field but will apply to any field type.

$node = node_load($nid);
$node->field_my_datetime[0][value] = time(); // ** LINE 2 **  See below.
$node->field_my_datetime[0][timezone] = 'Australia/Perth';
$node = node_submit($node);
node_save($node);

So the thing that took the longest to figure out was, how do you figure out what LINE 2 or 3 should be? Well I output the node as an array using node_build_content before updating to see the original value, before submitting to see the changed value and before saving to see if submitting had altered the node.

$node = node_load($nid);
print("<BR>Before Change<BR><pre>"); print_r(node_build_content($node)); print("</pre>");
$node->field_my_datetime[0][value] = time(); // ** LINE 2 **  See below.
$node->field_my_datetime[0][timezone] = 'Australia/Perth';
print("<BR>After change before submit<BR><pre>"); print_r(node_build_content($node)); print("</pre>");
$node = node_submit($node);
print("<BR>After submit before save<BR><pre>"); print_r(node_build_content($node)); print("</pre>");
node_save($node);

Examine the output and you will see elements like this:

[field_my_datetime] => Array
        (
            [0] => Array
                (
                    [value] => 1258687683
                    [timezone] => Australia/Sydney
                    [timezone_db] => UTC
                    [date_type] => datestamp
                )
        )

Basically if you take the elements in the brackets [] that translates to Line 2 and 3 above.

It might be worth noting that this requires you to be able to save a node in the first place and you might be having trouble working out the mandatory fields. So if you are trying to figure that out, save a node using the form GUI and then hard code that node ID into the above code to see the array.

Anyone come across the node being created without a type?!

I'm specifying the type as the example does in the beginning.

When I query the db to see if the node was created, I can see that it indeed WAS created but it has no 'type' associated with it.

Firstly, many thanks for posting this example of creating nodes programmatically, it was a really helpful step along the way to creating a file import routine that creates a new node for each line imported.

It worked beautifully until the last 3 lines!

Even though the $form_state['nid'] was definitely being set to the correct value, tne node_load would only return a blank node. I have no idea why this should have happened, and it is probably something I have done, even though I have checked the code many times, but I thought I would make this post in case others have a similar problem.

The end result was that 2 nodes were created - one with all the data and uid = 0, and another with no data and the correct uid! The former doesnt show in the content list because uid=0, the latter does but is blank. It is only by looking at the database that I could see what had happened.

After trying all sorts of things to remedy this, the solution I finally came up with was to remove the last 3 lines, create a nodeapi hook for op='presave', and force $node->uid = $user->uid.

It works, but I dont really understand why I have had to do it when on the face of it the last 3 lines should have done it in the first place. Can anyone explain it?

I'm creating nodes from hook_cron and drupal_execute is not altering the 'nid' in $form_state. Anyone know about this?

If you want to set the text input format for a bit of text:

    $form_state['values']['field_text'][0]['value'] = 'someText'; // regular text field
    $form_state['values']['field_text'][0]['format'] = 1; // regular text field

I found the easiest way to determine the $form_state array hierarchy is to look at the "name" attribute of the form element in the HTML source code.

It gives the exact values to use in the array.

Your code works great for assigning one uid to a user reference field. I'd like to add a uid to all of the uids already in the field. Any tips on assigning multiple uids to a user reference field?

Thank you for your Code!
I tried to import data to CCK FileField (referring to http://drupal.org/node/330421), but unfortunately it doesn't work ...

addSomeStuff();
function addSomeStuff() {

	$mime = 'image/jpeg'; 
	$file_drupal_path =  'sites/default/files/myImage.jpg'; // Image in 
	$file = new stdClass();
	$file->filename = basename($file_drupal_path);
	$file->filepath = $file_drupal_path;
	$file->filemime = $mime;
	$file->filesize = filesize($file_drupal_path);
	
	$file->uid = $uid;
	$file->status = FILE_STATUS_PERMANENT;
	$file->timestamp = time();
	drupal_write_record('files', $file);

    module_load_include('inc', 'node', 'node.pages'); // required
    $node = array('type' => 'story');
    $form_state = array();
    $form_state['values']['title'] = 'My new Node'; // node's title

    $form_state['values']['field_image']  = array(
      '0' => array(
      'fid' => $file->fid,
      'title' => basename($file->filename),
      'filename' => $file->filename,
      'filepath' => $file->filepath,
      'filesize' => $file->filesize,
      'mimetype' => $mime,
      'data' => array(
        'description' => basename($file->filename),
      ),
      'list' => 1,
   ),
  );
    
    $form_state['values']['op'] = t('Save'); // required value
    drupal_execute('story_node_form', $form_state, (object)$node);
    
    $node = node_load($form_state['nid']); // nid from the node that gets created is set in $form_state['nid'] after drupal_execute()
    $node->uid = 1; // set author to admin
    node_save($node);
}

If i execute this script, i receive a broke node and the following error:

Referencing to the file used in the Image field is not allowed.
warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /is/htdocs/wp1135826_X3HMP62N7A/www/dwb/sites/all/modules/cck/content.module on line 1244.
warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /is/htdocs/wp1135826_X3HMP62N7A/www/dwb/sites/all/modules/cck/content.module on line 1284.
warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /is/htdocs/wp1135826_X3HMP62N7A/www/dwb/sites/all/modules/cck/content.module on line 1284.
warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /is/htdocs/wp1135826_X3HMP62N7A/www/dwb/sites/all/modules/cck/includes/content.token.inc on line 42.

Any help for importing an image into CCK Filefield?
Thank you very much!

Tobias

I was pulling my hair out on this trying to use node_reference and user_reference fields.

What I got to work was:

/* I needed to set the following $form_state values in order to get the form to validate */
$form_state['values']['field_user_ref'][0]['uid']['uid'] = some_user_name; // had to use name NOT uid
$form_state['values']['field_node_ref']['nid']['nid'] = some_nid;

/* run drupal_execute */
drupal_execute('my_node_form', $form_state, $some_node);

/* But the user ref and node ref values would save as NULL's so I had to follow up with */
$node = node_load($form_state['nid']);
$node->field_user_ref[0]['uid'] = some_uid;  // NOW it's uid, not user_name
$node->field_node_ref[0]['nid'] = some_nid;
node_save($node);

/* now everything is stored correctly */

Running following versions:
drupal 6.19
cck 6.x-2.9
views 6.x-2.12

The user field was set to autofill text entry, and the node field was set to select list. This seems to play some role as changing node field to auto-fill text entry changed the expected input to "node_title [nid:###]'

Also, I could have sworn I had this working at one point, but sometime after upgrading cck and views, it stopped until I changed code to what I have entered above.

This is a very useful thread. Thank you

I got the date fields working with the drupal_execute scheme using the following format; note that my field has a from and to defined, hence the 'value2' here:

  $form_state['values']['field_dates'][0] = array(
    'value' => array(
      'date' => '09/01/2011',
      'time' => '03:00',
    ),

    'value2' => array(
      'date' => '09/29/2011',
      'time' => '04:00',
    ),
  );

Happy coding!

Sean

Another obscure tip...

Make sure the op value in your script

$form_state['values']['op'] = t('Save'); // required value

matches the submit button value on your node form. I had node form settings enabled and the values didn't match. Took some time to uncover that small detail.