Have you ever come across the name Laravel? It is conceivable that you have come across this term if you are deeply involved in the area of web development or if you are just beginning your journey in this field.
Having said that, it’s possible that you have some questions regarding the primary capabilities of this open-source utility. If such is the case, you should remain with us.
In the following paragraphs, we will detail everything you need to know about this framework.
Let’s jump right into it!
What do we use it for?
The Laravel framework is a system for developing websites that is based on the PHP language. Taylor Otwell introduced this free and open-source program in the year 2011.
Its guiding principle is crystal clear: the programmer’s first priority should be to write PHP that is both simple and elegant, and they should avoid clogging up the flow of the program with instructions that are difficult to understand.
However, despite the fact that it is a straightforward choice, it possesses all of the elements that it needs to have in a framework.
These preliminary impressions of Laravel are a fantastic starting point for getting to know the framework better.
Nevertheless, in order to comprehend its potential, one connected idea—namely, that of a framework – needs to have its meaning elucidated. This statement can be translated into English as a framework or work environment and refers to a set of concepts, strategies, and criteria that standardize the way to tackle a problem. It is also possible to say that this expression refers to a work environment.
As a result of this, there are a variety of frameworks that have been developed for use in a variety of contexts, such as the construction of websites or programs that can run across several platforms.
A framework must supply the developer with the appropriate tools, such as programs, libraries, and documentation, in order for the framework to be considered truly effective.
In this instance, Laravel is a framework that consists of a number of parameters whose primary purpose is the production of web pages. This is the framework’s primary goal.
In spite of its potential, the code that was produced is easy to grasp and is not very complicated.
In order to accomplish this goal, it has capitalized on the benefits that are provided by the most recent versions of PHP, as well as the strengths that are offered by other frameworks.
In point of fact, a good number of its dependencies are built on top of Symfony, which is another framework that was developed in order to create web applications by adhering to the Model View Controller approach.
How does it work?
Model-View-Controller, sometimes known as MVC, is a design pattern that is utilized by Laravel.
The “Model” indicates the structure of the data that your application processes and operates on.
Your model is a table of users, with each user having a list of posts that they have made. If you have such a table, use it.
This model is subject to the influence of the “Controller.” When a user makes a request to view the page that contains all of their posts, the controller initiates a conversation with the model, which is typically just the database, and retrieves the requested information.
The controller will do an update on the model whenever the user requests to make a new post. The vast majority of your application’s logic is stored within the controller.
The “View” is constructed with the help of that information by the controller. The view is a model to which the model can be attached and presented. Additionally, the controller has the ability to manipulate the view.
The view is the sum of the many HTML parts that make up your application. This framework is what Laravel utilizes to run the applications that you create. Utilizing the Blade template engine, HTML can be modularized and controlled by the controller.
It all starts with routes, defined inroutes/web.phpwhich handle HTTP requests based on the requested location.
For example, the following function would be executed if a user requested https://yoursite.com/greeting:
Route::get(‘/greeting’, function () { return view(‘greeting’, [‘name’ => ‘James’]);});
This path executes a function that returns a view deresources/views/. The view has been passed data (name ), which you can use within the markup:
Hello, {{ $name }}
Although this is the simplest option, a lot can take place between the time a view is requested and when it is returned to the user.
Middleware is supported by Laravel and will be executed before the request is actually handled.
Before processing a request, you can utilize this to determine whether or not a user has successfully authenticated themselves, which will allow you to restrict access to specific pages.
You also have the option of passing the request on to a controller, which is capable of handling more complex logic before providing any resource. This is an alternative to directly showing a view (often a view).
How to get started?
Of course, Laravel is not simple, but in the beginning, we won’t complicate it. Further, you will get familiar with other things such as Laravel eloquent and Laravel homestead, and many more.
Because Laravel is written in PHP, all that is required to run it is a web server like Apache or Nginx that has PHP installed. In addition to that, you will need Composer, which is a dependency manager for PHP, as well as a database. MySQL is supported, along with PostgreSQL and SQLite, and will work without any issues.
When you’ve finished setting up your environment, head over to Composer and enter composer global need laravel/installer to grab the latest version of Laravel.
Since this is only the installer, a fresh Laravel installation must be created with laravel new:
Laravel’s New Blog
By clicking this, a new directory will be made and given the name “blog,” and Laravel will be installed there.
Because it already has a.htaccess system built-in, all you need to do to use it is enable mod-rewrite so that Apache can read.htaccess files and direct Apache to the directory where they are stored.
Alternately, if you just want to get it up and running, you may utilize the built-in Artisan server that comes with PHP by executing the following command within the directory that contains the project:
php artisan serve
This begins the process of launching a development server at the address localhost:8000.
If it is operating on a server, you will need to open that port in order to access it, or you can utilize an SSH tunnel.
However, this is not a web server in the traditional sense; hence, Apache or Nginx will still be required for production use.