Deprecated Warning in wp_parse_list() When Passing Null Value

[dilipbheda]

When calling wp_parse_list( get_option( 'custom_theme_settings', null ) ), a deprecated warning appears in PHP 8.1+ due to passing null to preg_split().

Deprecated: preg_split(): Passing null to parameter #2 ($subject) of type string is deprecated 
in /var/www/html/codeinwp/wp-includes/functions.php on line 4967

Steps to Reproduce:

1. Call get_option( 'custom_theme_settings', null ) where the option does not exist.
2. Pass the result to wp_parse_list()
3. Observe the deprecated warning in PHP 8.1+

[swissspidy]

Our philosophy with this kind of issue has so far been that it should be fixed on the caller side. Instead of passing null to wp_parse_list() you should just pass a string.

So you should do wp_parse_list( get_option( 'custom_theme_settings', '' ) ) instead.

[karmatosed]

Thank you for reporting. However, for now I think moving this on with a close is the better approach as has been recommended. Let's do just that and we can always review should further information come up. Thank you.