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Record Modes

One-liner: the record mode decides whether an unmatched request is allowed to hit the network — pick the mode by how strict you want your test suite to be about network access.

On this page: Which mode? · new_episodes · once · none · all

Set via setMode(), using the VCR::MODE_* constants.

Which mode?​

flowchart TD
    A[Choose a record mode] --> B{"Do you want new, unrecorded<br/>requests to hit the network at all?"}
    B -- always allow --> C["new_episodes<br/>(default)"]
    B -- only the first time --> D[once]
    B -- never --> E[none]
    B -- "re-record everything,<br/>every run" --> F[all]

new_episodes​

Default. Plays back a recorded interaction if one matches; performs the real HTTP request for anything that doesn't, and records it. Every run can add new recordings — nothing ever throws for a new request.

\VCR\VCR::configure()->setMode(\VCR\VCR::MODE_NEW_EPISODES); // or omit — it's the default

Good default for local development; less good for CI, where you usually want tests to fail loudly if they try to reach the real network unexpectedly.

once​

Plays back recorded interactions. Allows new (unmatched) requests only on the cassette's first run — once a cassette file exists with content, any further unmatched request throws \LogicException.

\VCR\VCR::configure()->setMode(\VCR\VCR::MODE_ONCE);

This is the practical middle ground: the first time a test runs (or after deleting the cassette), it records freely; every run after that is fully offline and any new/changed request is caught immediately as a test failure instead of silently hitting the network.

none​

Read-only. Any request that doesn't match a recording throws \LogicException — even on a brand-new cassette.

\VCR\VCR::configure()->setMode(\VCR\VCR::MODE_NONE);

Use this once you've committed cassettes and want a hard guarantee that a test suite never performs a real HTTP request, ever.

all​

Re-record mode. Never plays back — always performs the real HTTP request and records fresh. The cassette is purged on insertCassette(), so every run starts from empty.

\VCR\VCR::configure()->setMode(\VCR\VCR::MODE_ALL);
\VCR\VCR::turnOn();
\VCR\VCR::insertCassette('my_cassette'); // existing recordings are purged immediately
file_get_contents('http://example.com'); // always a real request, always re-recorded
\VCR\VCR::eject();

⚠️ Warning: a run under all that performs no HTTP request leaves an empty cassette — that's inherent to "purge first, then re-record," not a bug.

  • Requires a storage that implements PurgeableStorage — all three built-in backends (yaml, json, blackhole) do.

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