#63 Model Name in URL (revised)

Dec 16, 2012 | 9 minutes | Active Record, Routing

A model's ID in the URL is not very helpful to the user. Consider adding the name which can also improve SEO. Learn how to override to_param, add a slug attribute, and make a catch all route for deep nesting.

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Resources

          terminal
        
rails g migration add_slug_to_pages slug:index
rake db:migrate

          rails console
        
"7-product-categories".to_i
Page.find_each(&:save!)

          models/page.rb
        
validates :slug, uniqueness: true, presence: true,
                 exclusion: {in: %w[signup login]}

before_validation :generate_slug

def to_param
  slug # or "#{id}-#{name}".parameterize
end

def generate_slug
  self.slug ||= name.parameterize
end

          config/routes.rb
        
resources :pages, only: [:index, :new, :create]
resources :pages, path: "", except: [:index, :new, :create]
get '*id', to: 'pages#show'

          pages_controller.rb
        
before_filter :find_page, only: [:show, :edit, :update, :destroy]

private

def find_page
  @page = Page.find_by_slug!(params[:id].split("/").last)
end

          pages_helper.rb
        
def nested_page_path(page)
  "/" + (page.ancestors + [page]).map(&:to_param).join("/")
end