INSERT IGNORE using Laravel's Fluent

Try this magic, in your model:

public static function insertIgnore($array){
    $a = new static();
    if($a->timestamps){
        $now = \Carbon\Carbon::now();
        $array['created_at'] = $now;
        $array['updated_at'] = $now;
    }
    DB::insert('INSERT IGNORE INTO '.$a->table.' ('.implode(',',array_keys($array)).
        ') values (?'.str_repeat(',?',count($array) - 1).')',array_values($array));
}

Use like this:

Shop::insertIgnore(array('name' => 'myshop'));

This is a great way to prevent constraint violations that may occur with firstOrCreate in a multi-user environment, if that 'name' property was a unique key.

I couldn't monkey patch as suggested in Rastislav's answer.

This is what worked for me:

1. Override compileInsert method in a custom Query Grammar class, which extends the framework's MySqlGrammar class.

2. Use an instance of this custom grammar class by calling the setQueryGrammar method from the DB connection instance.

So, the class code is like this:

<?php

namespace My\Namespace;

use Illuminate\Database\Query\Builder;
use Illuminate\Database\Query\Grammars\MySqlGrammar;

/**
 * Changes "INSERT" to "INSERT IGNORE"
 */
class CustomMySqlGrammar extends MySqlGrammar
{
    /**
     * Compile an insert statement into SQL.
     *
     * @param  \Illuminate\Database\Query\Builder  $query
     * @param  array  $values
     * @return string
     */
    public function compileInsert(Builder $query, array $values)
    {
        // Essentially we will force every insert to be treated as a batch insert which
        // simply makes creating the SQL easier for us since we can utilize the same
        // basic routine regardless of an amount of records given to us to insert.
        $table = $this->wrapTable($query->from);

        if (! is_array(reset($values))) {
            $values = [$values];
        }

        $columns = $this->columnize(array_keys(reset($values)));

        // We need to build a list of parameter place-holders of values that are bound
        // to the query. Each insert should have the exact same amount of parameter
        // bindings so we will loop through the record and parameterize them all.
        $parameters = collect($values)->map(function ($record) {
            return '('.$this->parameterize($record).')';
        })->implode(', ');

        return "insert ignore into $table ($columns) values $parameters";
    }
}

I copied the compileInsert method from the framework's class and then, inside the method, I have only changed insert to insert ignore. Everything else has been kept the same.

Then, in the specific spot of code, in the application (a scheduled task), where I needed "insert ignore", I have simply done as follows:

<?php

use DB;
use My\Namespace\CustomMySqlGrammar;

class SomeClass
{
    public function someMethod()
    {
        // Changes "INSERT" to "INSERT IGNORE"
        DB::connection()->setQueryGrammar(new CustomMySqlGrammar());

        // et cetera... for example:
        ModelClass::insert($data);
    }
}

Updated answer for Laravel Eloquent in 2018

This also handles multiple simultaneous inserts (instead of one record at a time).

Warning: Eric's comment below is probably correct. This code worked for my past project, but before using this code again, I'd take a closer look at it and add test cases and adjust the function until it always works as intended. It might be as simple as moving the TODO line down outside the if braces.

Either put this in your model's class or in a BaseModel class that your model extends:

/**
 * @see https://stackoverflow.com/a/25472319/470749
 * 
 * @param array $arrayOfArrays
 * @return bool
 */
public static function insertIgnore($arrayOfArrays) {
    $static = new static();
    $table = with(new static)->getTable(); //https://github.com/laravel/framework/issues/1436#issuecomment-28985630
    $questionMarks = '';
    $values = [];
    foreach ($arrayOfArrays as $k => $array) {
        if ($static->timestamps) {
            $now = \Carbon\Carbon::now();
            $arrayOfArrays[$k]['created_at'] = $now;
            $arrayOfArrays[$k]['updated_at'] = $now;
            if ($k > 0) {
                $questionMarks .= ',';
            }
            $questionMarks .= '(?' . str_repeat(',?', count($array) - 1) . ')';
            $values = array_merge($values, array_values($array));//TODO
        }
    }
    $query = 'INSERT IGNORE INTO ' . $table . ' (' . implode(',', array_keys($array)) . ') VALUES ' . $questionMarks;
    return DB::insert($query, $values);
}

Use like this:

Shop::insertIgnore([['name' => 'myShop'], ['name' => 'otherShop']]);