drupal-entity-api

Drupal Entity API

Field Type Selection Matrix

Content Need	Field Type	Widget	Notes
Event date/time	datetime	datetime_default	Single datetime
Date range	daterange	daterange_default	Start/end dates
Location (simple)	string	string_textfield	Text-based
Location (structured)	address (contrib)	address_default	Full address
Short text	string	string_textfield	Max 255 chars
Long text	text_long	text_textarea	Unlimited plain text
Rich content	text_with_summary	text_textarea_with_summary	Formatted with summary
Email	email	email_default	Validated email
Phone	telephone	telephone_default	Phone number
Website	link	link_default	URL with title
Document	file	file_generic	Any file type
Image	image	image_image	With alt text
Content reference	entity_reference (node)	entity_reference_autocomplete	Links to nodes
Term reference	entity_reference (taxonomy_term)	entity_reference_autocomplete	Categories
Yes/No flag	boolean	boolean_checkbox	True/false
Whole number	integer	number	Integer values
Decimal number	decimal	number	Precise decimals (financial)
Float number	float	number	Approximate decimals
Flexible components	entity_reference_revisions (paragraphs)	paragraphs	Contrib: requires entity_reference_revisions storage

Entity Type Selection

Always choose the right entity type for your data. Use ContentEntityBase for fieldable content, ConfigEntityBase for exportable config. Never create a custom entity when a node type would suffice.

• Nodes (ContentEntityType): Published content (articles, pages, events).
• Custom entities (ContentEntityBase): Non-published data (rarely needed — prefer nodes).
• Taxonomy terms: Categorization and metadata.
• Paragraphs: Flexible content components.
• Media: Files, images, videos.
• Users: User profiles (extend, don't replace).

Custom Entity Definition

Always implement baseFieldDefinitions() to declare your entity's base fields. Always add an AccessControlHandler class for custom entities.

// In your entity class:
public static function baseFieldDefinitions(EntityTypeInterface $entity_type): array {
  $fields = parent::baseFieldDefinitions($entity_type);
  // Add custom base fields here.
  return $fields;
}

Entity CRUD Operations

Use dependency injection — inject EntityTypeManagerInterface via constructor, never use \Drupal:: static calls in classes.

// In a service or controller with injected $entityTypeManager:

// Load single entity.
$node = $this->entityTypeManager->getStorage('node')->load($nid);

// Load multiple entities (avoids N+1).
$nodes = $this->entityTypeManager->getStorage('node')->loadMultiple($nids);

// Create entity.
$node = $this->entityTypeManager->getStorage('node')->create([
  'type' => 'article',
  'title' => 'My Article',
  'field_tags' => [['target_id' => $tid]],
]);
$node->save();

// Query entities (inject EntityTypeManagerInterface, not entityQuery directly).
$nids = $this->entityTypeManager->getStorage('node')->getQuery()
  ->condition('type', 'article')
  ->condition('status', 1)
  ->accessCheck(TRUE)
  ->range(0, 10)
  ->execute();

Entity Access Control Handler

Custom entities need an AccessControlHandler. Without one, all access defaults to denied.

declare(strict_types=1);

namespace Drupal\my_module\Access;

use Drupal\Core\Access\AccessResult;
use Drupal\Core\Entity\EntityAccessControlHandler;
use Drupal\Core\Entity\EntityInterface;
use Drupal\Core\Session\AccountInterface;

final class MyEntityAccessControlHandler extends EntityAccessControlHandler {

  protected function checkAccess(EntityInterface $entity, $operation, AccountInterface $account): AccessResult {
    return match ($operation) {
      'view' => AccessResult::allowedIfHasPermission($account, 'view my_entity'),
      'update' => AccessResult::allowedIfHasPermission($account, 'edit my_entity'),
      'delete' => AccessResult::allowedIfHasPermission($account, 'delete my_entity'),
      default => AccessResult::neutral(),
    };
  }

  protected function checkCreateAccess(AccountInterface $account, array $context, $entity_bundle = NULL): AccessResult {
    return AccessResult::allowedIfHasPermission($account, 'create my_entity');
  }

}

Register in the entity annotation: handlers = {"access" = "Drupal\my_module\Access\MyEntityAccessControlHandler"}

Field Storage Reusability

Share field storage across content types when the same concept applies:

# Good: shared storage
field_location (on event, venue, office)
field_contact_email (on person, organization, department)

# Bad: duplicated storage
field_event_location, field_venue_location, field_office_location

View Modes

• full: Full content display.
• teaser: Summary/listing display.
• search_result: Search listing.
• Custom view modes for specific contexts (e.g., card, sidebar).

Content Modeling Checklist

1. Identify fields that can share storage across bundles.
2. Select appropriate field types (not just "string" for everything).
3. Plan widget types for optimal editor experience.
4. Consider cardinality (single vs multi-value).
5. Plan required fields vs optional.
6. Document field purposes and usage.
7. Consider field display in different view modes.