hook_tokens() implementation no longer being called

Question

We have a custom module in development, the purpose of which is to fetch the email addresses of the users who review content. Upon revisiting this module (after updating from Drupal-7.41 to Drupal-7.51) its hook_tokens() implementation is no longer being called in the same way it was before.

I cannot understand why this functionality no longer works. I thought this was a proper implementation of these functions. It now no longer fires on nodes, but when an entity is on a node.

Why would hook_tokens() not be called on a node? (The module is enabled, depends on tokens and workbench_access, both of which are enabled.)

Please forgive me if my question is framed inappropriately, I may have an inaccurate understanding of the hook function(s), but I've checked the API and haven't gained clarity. I know for a fact that this module worked earlier this year with Drupal-7.41, but I couldn't find any changes in the related API since that release.

function mymodule_token_info() {
   $info = array();
   $info['tokens']['node']['publisher_one'] = array(
     'name' => t('Section Publisher One'),
     'description' => t('Email address of sections primary publisher.'),
   );
   $info['tokens']['node']['publisher_two'] = array(
     'name' => t('Section Publisher Two'),
     'description' => t('Email address of sections secondary publisher.'),
   );
   return $info;
}

function mymodule_tokens($type, $tokens, array $data = array(), array $options = array()) {
   $replacements = array();
   if ($type == 'node' && !empty($data['node'])) {
      print_r('inside if conditional');
      $section_users = array();
      $users = entity_load('user'); 
      // Get the current Page's section ID (sID).
      $sID = key(_workbench_access_get_node_section_names($data['node']));
      $user_count = 0;
      // Is a given user 1) assigned to the same section as the node and also
      //  of the role identified as the one to be notified.
      // If so, their email address are acquired.
      foreach($users as $user) {
          $user_sections = _workbench_access_get_user_section_names($user);
          if(array_key_exists($sID, $user_sections) && $user_count < 2){
              $role_type = user_roles(TRUE)[variable_get('waemail_role', '0')];
              if(in_array($role_type, $user->roles)){
                  if($user_count == 0){
                      $section_users['publisher_one'] = $user->mail;
                      $user_count++;
                  }
                  else if($user_count == 1){
                      $section_users['publisher_two'] = $user->mail;
                      $user_count++;
                      break;
                  }
              }
          }
      }

      // Assign the values aquired above to the tokens.
      foreach ($tokens as $name => $original) {
          switch ($name) {
              case 'publisher_one':
                  if(!empty($section_users[$name]))
                      $replacements[$original] = $section_users[$name];
                  break;
              case 'publisher_two':
                  if(!empty($section_users[$name]))
                      $replacements[$original] = $section_users[$name];
                  break;
          }
      }
    } //end if($type == 'node'...
 return $replacements;
}

Answer 1

hook_tokens() is invoked only when token_generate() is called. Since that doesn't necessarily happens when a node is viewed (or similar events), but it happens when a module calls token_replace(), hook_tokens() not being invoked could not mean your code is wrong.

Assuming that the code you show is not causing any PHP error, that means that a module that was before calling token_replace() is not calling that function anymore, or it is calling it in very specific occasions.
For PHP error I mean:

• The code is calling a function that doesn't exist anymore (e.g. _workbench_access_get_user_section_names())
• It is calling a function that is returning a value of a different type from what it previously returned (e.g. _workbench_access_get_user_section_names() returns a value that is not an array)

There isn't any change in the token subsystem from Drupal 7.41 to Drupal 7.51 that could cause your code not to work anymore. The only reason for your hook_tokens() implementation not to be invoked in a change in the code of the module your hook implementation is using, or a change in the code of a module that was generating token when viewing a node (or a similar event).

To test your implementation of hook_tokens(), you should directly call token_replace() passing a string containing a token your module defines and a node object. If the token is not replaced, then you can check for errors in your code; if the token is replaced, then your code is working perfectly, and your hook_tokens() implementation is not invoked simply because no module is replacing tokens in a string when you are expecting it to happen.

I would use the following code, to put in a file in the same directory containing the index.php file that comes with Drupal.

/**
 * @file
 * Test page to check the hook implementation of a custom module work.
 */

/**
 * Root directory of Drupal installation.
 */
define('DRUPAL_ROOT', getcwd());

require_once DRUPAL_ROOT . '/includes/bootstrap.inc';
drupal_bootstrap(DRUPAL_BOOTSTRAP_FULL);

// Load a node to use as context for the tokens.
// Change the argument for node_load() to match the node ID of
// an existing node.
$node = node_load(1);

// Change the string to the token name for the token that needs to
// be tested.
$token = 'publisher_one';

$result = token_replace("[$token]", array('node' => $node), array('clear' => FALSE));

if ($result == "[$token]") {
  // The token has not been replaced.
}