# STI and ActiveRecord attributes unprotected **URL:** \ **Category:** Rails\ **Created:** [March 22, 2006, 4:56pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/sti-and-activerecord-attributes-unprotected/85355 "2006-03-22T16:56:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sserdyuk)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2006, 4:56pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/sti-and-activerecord-attributes-unprotected/85355/1 "2006-03-22T16:56:36Z")
Hi, This does not seem to be covered anywhere. Since base class extends ActiveRecord with a table that has fields for all heirs, would that mean that any heir class can access any of those attributes, including ones that belong to other heirs? Or I am missing something? ---
**Author:** ![sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sserdyuk)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/sti-and-activerecord-attributes-unprotected/85355/2 "2006-03-22T18:43:52Z")
> This does not seem to be covered anywhere. Since base class extends > ActiveRecord with a table that has fields for all heirs, would that mean > that any heir class can access any of those attributes, including ones > that belong to other heirs? > > Or I am missing something? ## You’re correct. All classes in an STI setup has access to all attributes. Usually the answer is: It Just Doesn’t Matter. But if it does to you, you can always use attr\_protected or overwrite the other attributes with accessors that throws an exception. Whatever floats your boat 😉 David Heinemeier H. [http://www.loudthinking.com](http://www.loudthinking.com) – Broadcasting Brain [http://www.basecamphq.com](http://www.basecamphq.com) – Online project management [http://www.backpackit.com](http://www.backpackit.com) – Personal information manager [http://www.rubyonrails.com](http://www.rubyonrails.com) – Web-application framework ---
**Author:** ![sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sserdyuk)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 3:29am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/sti-and-activerecord-attributes-unprotected/85355/3 "2006-03-23T03:29:07Z")
David, I have a lot trust in your decisions and opinions, but what about things that iterate over attribute collections like scaffolds for example? Neither solution will work correctly with them. I am not saying this is the end of the world. Just an observation. > Usually the answer is: It Just Doesn’t Matter. But if it > does to you, you can always use attr\_protected or overwrite the other > attributes with accessors that throws an exception. Whatever floats > your boat 😉 ---
**Author:** ![sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@sserdyuk](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sserdyuk)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 3:43am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/sti-and-activerecord-attributes-unprotected/85355/4 "2006-03-23T03:43:17Z")
On 3/22/06, Sergei S. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > David, I have a lot trust in your decisions and opinions, but what about > things that iterate over attribute collections like scaffolds for > example? Neither solution will work correctly with them. I am not saying > this is the end of the world. Just an observation. > > > Usually the answer is: It Just Doesn’t Matter. But if it > > does to you, you can always use attr\_protected or overwrite the other > > attributes with accessors that throws an exception. Whatever floats > > your boat 😉 If you can think of a way for ActiveRecord to know which attributes belong to which subclass without having to specify them “by hand” in the model file, I’d be happy to work on a patch. I haven’t been able to come up with anything solid myself; this is just a side-effect of the column auto-discovery technique AR uses, in my opinion.