Trouble accessing Magento admin panel extension options

Backend
1

Hey guys, I’m new to Magento and I’m trying to make my first extension. I’ve been following some tutorials but I’m stuck. The problem is with showing options in the admin panel settings.

I’ve set up my folders and files like this:

MyStore
  /--CoolFeature
     /--Block
     /--controllers
     /--etc
        /--config.xml
        /--system.xml
     /--Helper
        /--Data.php
     /--Model
        /--Choices.php
     /--sql

I’ve got my main config file and system.xml set up. The weird thing is, when I remove the second section from system.xml, everything works fine. But as soon as I add <source_model>coolfeature/choices</source_model>, it breaks.

My Data.php is just a basic helper class, and Choices.php has a simple toOptionArray() method with some test data.

I’m pretty sure the problem is in my system.xml file, but I can’t figure out what’s wrong. Can anyone help me spot the issue? I’d really appreciate some advice!

2

hey sophia, sounds like a tricky issue. have u tried clearin the cache? sometimes that fixes weird stuff. also, double check ur namespace in system.xml matches ur module structure exactly. if that dont work, try commenting out parts of ur system.xml to narrow down the problem. good luck!

3

I’ve encountered similar issues when working with Magento extensions. One common oversight is ensuring the correct namespace and class names are used in the system.xml file. Double-check that your ‘coolfeature/choices’ path correctly matches your module’s namespace and the Choices.php file location.

Another potential issue could be in the Choices.php file itself. Make sure the toOptionArray() method is properly implemented and returns an array in the correct format expected by Magento. Also, verify that your module is properly registered in the config.xml file and that all necessary XML nodes are present.

If these don’t resolve the issue, try clearing Magento’s cache and checking the system logs for any specific error messages. Sometimes, a small typo or misplaced XML tag can cause the entire section to fail. Debugging with log statements in your Choices.php file might also help pinpoint where the problem occurs.

4

hey sophia! have you checked if the Choices.php file is in the right place? Sometimes Magento can be picky about file locations. also, maybe try adding some debug statements in your toOptionArray() method to see if it’s being called? let us know what you find out!