new¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->new($distmeta_struct, \%options);

Returns a valid CPAN::Meta object or dies if the supplied metadata hash reference fails to validate. Older-format metadata will be up-converted to version 2 if they validate against the original stated specification.

It takes an optional hashref of options. Valid options include:

•

lazy_validation -- if true, new will attempt to convert the given metadata to version 2 before attempting to validate it. This means than any fixable errors will be handled by CPAN::Meta::Converter before validation. (Note that this might result in invalid optional data being silently dropped.) The default is false.

create¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->create($distmeta_struct, \%options);

This is same as new(), except that "generated_by" and "meta-spec" fields will be generated if not provided. This means the metadata structure is assumed to otherwise follow the latest CPAN::Meta::Spec.

load_file¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->load_file($distmeta_file, \%options);

Given a pathname to a file containing metadata, this deserializes the file according to its file suffix and constructs a new "CPAN::Meta" object, just like new(). It will die if the deserialized version fails to validate against its stated specification version.

It takes the same options as new() but "lazy_validation" defaults to true.

load_yaml_string¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->load_yaml_string($yaml, \%options);

This method returns a new CPAN::Meta object using the first document in the given YAML string. In other respects it is identical to load_file().

load_json_string¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->load_json_string($json, \%options);

This method returns a new CPAN::Meta object using the structure represented by the given JSON string. In other respects it is identical to load_file().

load_string¶

  my $meta = CPAN::Meta->load_string($string, \%options);

If you don't know if a string contains YAML or JSON, this method will use Parse::CPAN::Meta to guess. In other respects it is identical to load_file().

save¶

  $meta->save($distmeta_file, \%options);

Serializes the object as JSON and writes it to the given file. The only valid option is "version", which defaults to '2'. On Perl 5.8.1 or later, the file is saved with UTF-8 encoding.

For "version" 2 (or higher), the filename should end in '.json'. JSON::PP is the default JSON backend. Using another JSON backend requires JSON 2.5 or later and you must set the $ENV{PERL_JSON_BACKEND} to a supported alternate backend like JSON::XS.

For "version" less than 2, the filename should end in '.yml'. CPAN::Meta::Converter is used to generate an older metadata structure, which is serialized to YAML. CPAN::Meta::YAML is the default YAML backend. You may set the $ENV{PERL_YAML_BACKEND} to a supported alternative backend, though this is not recommended due to subtle incompatibilities between YAML parsers on CPAN.

meta_spec_version¶

This method returns the version part of the "meta_spec" entry in the distmeta structure. It is equivalent to:

  $meta->meta_spec->{version};

effective_prereqs¶

  my $prereqs = $meta->effective_prereqs;
  my $prereqs = $meta->effective_prereqs( \@feature_identifiers );

This method returns a CPAN::Meta::Prereqs object describing all the prereqs for the distribution. If an arrayref of feature identifiers is given, the prereqs for the identified features are merged together with the distribution's core prereqs before the CPAN::Meta::Prereqs object is returned.

should_index_file¶

  ... if $meta->should_index_file( $filename );

This method returns true if the given file should be indexed. It decides this by checking the "file" and "directory" keys in the "no_index" property of the distmeta structure. Note that neither the version format nor "release_status" are considered.

$filename should be given in unix format.

should_index_package¶

  ... if $meta->should_index_package( $package );

This method returns true if the given package should be indexed. It decides this by checking the "package" and "namespace" keys in the "no_index" property of the distmeta structure. Note that neither the version format nor "release_status" are considered.

features¶

  my @feature_objects = $meta->features;

This method returns a list of CPAN::Meta::Feature objects, one for each optional feature described by the distribution's metadata.

feature¶

  my $feature_object = $meta->feature( $identifier );

This method returns a CPAN::Meta::Feature object for the optional feature with the given identifier. If no feature with that identifier exists, an exception will be raised.

as_struct¶

  my $copy = $meta->as_struct( \%options );

This method returns a deep copy of the object's metadata as an unblessed hash reference. It takes an optional hashref of options. If the hashref contains a "version" argument, the copied metadata will be converted to the version of the specification and returned. For example:

  my $old_spec = $meta->as_struct( {version => "1.4"} );

as_string¶

  my $string = $meta->as_string( \%options );

This method returns a serialized copy of the object's metadata as a character string. (The strings are not UTF-8 encoded.) It takes an optional hashref of options. If the hashref contains a "version" argument, the copied metadata will be converted to the version of the specification and returned. For example:

  my $string = $meta->as_string( {version => "1.4"} );

For "version" greater than or equal to 2, the string will be serialized as JSON. For "version" less than 2, the string will be serialized as YAML. In both cases, the same rules are followed as in the save() method for choosing a serialization backend.

The serialized structure will include a "x_serialization_backend" entry giving the package and version used to serialize. Any existing key in the given $meta object will be clobbered.

Bugs / Feature Requests¶

Please report any bugs or feature requests through the issue tracker at <https://github.com/Perl-Toolchain-Gang/CPAN-Meta/issues>. You will be notified automatically of any progress on your issue.

Source Code¶

This is open source software. The code repository is available for public review and contribution under the terms of the license.

<https://github.com/Perl-Toolchain-Gang/CPAN-Meta>

  git clone https://github.com/Perl-Toolchain-Gang/CPAN-Meta.git