Joomla database BLOB file download

Question

I am storing some files in the MySQL database as BLOB. I would like to have a download possibility for the BLOB files in my view. All informations are accessible, but how can I download the file from the database according to the MVC model?

Answer 1

MVC is a pattern, not a law. So you are always free to code it your way. But according to current standard you would avoid a View, because there is nothing to display. Just a controller which is getting the data from the Model and returning it as response.

In most cases i would write a general Controller for handling files and inherit from it.

Answer 2

Basically you can do it with a controller and a model.

• The controller will be called like: index.php?option=com_example&task=getFile&fileName=example.png&format=raw where the controller will call a method from the model and will make sure it provides the right header so that the browser can display / download the file.

• The model can have a simple getFile($fileName) method and will return the result of the query.