Blog

Brad Wood

January 11, 2013

Spread the word


Share your thoughts

 

If you've ever wanted to modify any behavior of the core ColdBox controller, you can now do so as of version 3.5.3 with the Controller Decorator feature.  This is accomplished much like the Request Context Decorator.
 
First, add a configuration setting called "ControllerDecorator" in the coldbox struct of your config file.  
 
/config/ColdBox.cfc
coldbox.controllerDecorator = "path.to.myControllerDecotrator";
 
Next, build your decorator as a CFC that extends our base coldbox.system.web.ControllerDecorator class like so.
 
/path/to/myControllerDecotrator.cfc
component extends="coldbox.system.web.ControllerDecorator"{
 
    function setNextEvent(){
        arguments.ssl = true;
        getController.setNextEvent( argumentCollection=arguments );
    }
 
}
 
That example would wrap the setNextEvent method and force it to always redirect to a secure URL.
 
 
P.S. Instead of extending a class with a super reference, the decorator pattern composes the original object in an invisible wrapper class which contains a reference to the original.  In your controller decorator, you can use the getController() method to get the original controller object.

Add Your Comment

Recent Entries

BoxLang AI v2: Enterprise AI Development Without the Complexity

BoxLang AI v2: Enterprise AI Development Without the Complexity

One Year. 100+ Features. Unlimited Possibilities.

Just one year ago, in March 2024, we launched BoxLang AI 1.0. Today, we're thrilled to announce BoxLang AI v2—a massive leap forward that positions BoxLang as the most powerful and versatile AI framework on the JVM.

Luis Majano
Luis Majano
January 19, 2026
CommandBox: A Smarter Foundation for BoxLang and CFML Workflows

CommandBox: A Smarter Foundation for BoxLang and CFML Workflows

In day-to-day development, some tools simply do their job… and others quietly change the way you work. CommandBox falls into the second category.

It doesn’t replace your editor, framework, or existing applications. Instead, it becomes the common ground where CFML and BoxLang development meet ,giving teams a consistent, reliable way to build, run, and evolve their projects.

Victor Campos
Victor Campos
January 16, 2026
BoxLang v1.9.0 : Production-Ready Stability, Enhanced Lifecycle Management, and Rock-Solid Reliability

BoxLang v1.9.0 : Production-Ready Stability, Enhanced Lifecycle Management, and Rock-Solid Reliability

Happy New Year! The BoxLang team is excited to announce BoxLang 1.9.0, a significant stability and compatibility release focused on production-readiness thanks to our client migrations and new application deployments. This release also introduces array-based form field parsing conventions, enhanced datasource lifecycle management, improved context handling, and resolves over 50 critical bugs to ensure enterprise-grade reliability for mission-critical applications.

Luis Majano
Luis Majano
January 09, 2026