Return type inconsistency in retrieveCachedContent(): docblock says string but method may return false

[zigzagdev]

Summary

In Smarty\Cacheresource\File::retrieveCachedContent(), the docblock indicates that the method returns a string, but the implementation may return false when the cache file does not exist.

/**
 * Read cached template from cache
 *
 * @param Template $_template template object
 *
 * @return string content
 */
public function retrieveCachedContent(Template $_template)
{
    if (is_file($_template->getCached()->filepath)) {
        return file_get_contents($_template->getCached()->filepath);
    }
    return false;
}

This creates a mismatch between the documented return type and the actual return value.

Question

Is the intended contract of this method:

1. string|false (return cached content or false if not found), or
2. always string, where missing cache should be handled differently (e.g. exception or empty string)?

Before opening a PR, I would like to confirm the expected behavior.

Possible solutions

Depending on the intended contract:

• Option A — adjust documentation
  Update the docblock to reflect the actual return type, e.g.
  @return string|false

• Option B — enforce a string return type
  Ensure the method always returns a string and handle missing cache differently.

Next step

Once the expected behavior is clarified, I’d be happy to open a PR to align either the implementation or the documentation.

[wisskid]

I'd go with changing the phpdoc, not the actual implementation.