Laravel is one of the most popular and top frameworks for PHP which has received a humongous appreciation. Want to know why? Read on…
- Open Source: Laravel is an open-source framework which makes certain that the code is being viewed and reviewed by multiple developers.
-This ensures that the bugs don’t go unnoticed and the patches are made quickly and in a professional manner.
The collaboration and inputs from multiple developers are the reason why Laravel has grown in terms of popularity and robustness.
It is the contribution of the people working together that results in the discovery of the solutions to numerous problems being faced on a developer and a user level. - Built-in Support for Authentication and Authorisation: Every new technology is created to either enhance the existing technologies or bring new technologies into the world. Authentication is implemented when the web application has to recognise a user trying to log into the application.
The authorisation is the decision-making process when the web application decides to make pages and content visible to the user based on their identity (authenticated). Laravel was created to enhance security features that were not present in the existing frameworks.
With the help of Artisan, Laravel’s CLI, the developer can integrate authentication and authorisation into their web applications with ease. - Command Line Interface: Artisan, the command line interface for Laravel is a tool to provide the developers with a chance to build their web applications with Laravel using CLI, which most developers are comfortable using.
It might be a bit confusing for you if you are beginner the reason why anyone would prefer a CLI over a full-fledged GUI. The reason for the same is that when you are using CLI, there are fewer chances of making errors as the commands are very specific and are supposed to perform one particular task. You can easily handle a large number of files by using very few commands.
In addition to this, some tasks require permissions from the OS you are using, when you are using a shell or a CLI, you are provided with all the permissions you require to execute your commands.
From its introduction in Laravel 3 and now when Laravel 8 is into existence, Artisan has only grown and has built upon itself to provide the developers with even more features and functionalities.
It can generate boilerplates and save the developers a lot of time in rewriting the same introductory code again and again. In addition to this, Artisan is also capable of automatically undertaking tasks that are performed again and again in the development of a web application. - Support for Database Management Systems: Laravel supports the following database management systems: MySQL, Postgres, SQLite and SQL Server.
Postgres is an open-source database management system which has been used by companies like Apple, Skype, Instagram, Spotify, Twitch, Reddit, IMDb, NASA etc. MySQL is a popular database management system which is beginner-friendly and has been used by Pinterest, Netflix, Amazon, Twitter etc.
SQLite provides data storage services and support for IoT devices which has been used by Hyatt Hotels, Career Club etc. SQL Server is another database management system created by Microsoft.
To know more about the importance of these database management systems in web development, refer to this. - Database Seeding: The process of using dummy data for testing the initial phases of a web application development is known as database seeding. Laravel provides auto data filling facility which the developers can utilise for testing purposes.
While an application is in production, an ideal environment is provided, free from all use cases and loads. It is therefore essential to test your application before deploying it to make it as bug-free as possible and lower the need for releasing patches.
If proper testing is done for an application, the time which would have been utilised for fixing the bugs is put into creating updates and building on the improvements for the application. - Form Request: Form requests is a function of Laravel which is no less than a boon. Laravel is the framework which can bind event listeners, validate forms and generate forms at once!
- Documentation: Laravel has a beautifully written documentation which is full of examples and use cases. It is suitable for developers ranging from the level of a beginner to an advanced developer.
This is the perfect guide for anybody who either wants to start learning Laravel or just wants to brush on his/her concepts and/or refer to some code and examples.
Here is the link to their official documentation here. - Packages: There are several PHP based packages which are used in Laravel. ‘Packagist’ is the PHP package repository from where one can download these and use them directly into their application.
Some of the packages and their uses are:
- Envoy: For having a better syntax of your tasks.
- Cashier: Handles billing services, subscripts, invoices, coupons and cards.
- Socialite: For authenticating users with the help of their other accounts (Google accounts, Facebook accounts, GitHub accounts, Twitter accounts etc.)
- Passport: For OAuth2.
- Scout: For text searching facilities.
- Dusk: For browser automation and testing.
- Telescope: For handling incoming browser and server requests.
- Sanctum: For authentication of a single page, mobile apps and simple APIs.
- Jetstream: For improvising the UI capabilities of Laravel applications by utilising Livewire, Blade, Inertia.js and Vue.
- Fortify: For managing user tasks and for providing support to Jetstream.
9. Code Readability: The features that enhance the code readability of Laravel framework are form requests, service layer abstraction, new ways of writing model queries, model scopes, query building, query builder macros etc.
10. Template Engine: A template engine helps to replace a static template’s variables with actual data which are essential for creating and handling a dynamic website.
Laravel has a template engine of its own, Blade which makes designing web pages extremely easy. This template engine has no effect on the web application’s performance.
11. Auto Loading: Laravel provides the developers with a very interesting feature. It only loads the components or PHP classes which are being actually used at the time of running of the application. Autoloading is performed with the help of the composer which is a dependency manager for PHP.
The composer works like a magic wand and automatically connects the dependencies required by the dependencies in your web application.
It also helps in handling of a complex root structure and numerous classes. When applications are auto-loaded, the performance of an application increases many folds.
12. Storage: Laravel framework comes with support for storing files on the cloud. It has support for Amazon S3 and Rack.
Cloud storage can save you a lot of money when you are just starting with your venture and need a web application which requires data storage of multiple users. It does away with the need for renting servers for storage purposes.
The possibility of data loss when you are using cloud storage is also extremely low as multiple copies of the users’ data are created across regions and zones for it to be available from almost everywhere.
The data also stays protected against ransomware and malware attacks when stored on the cloud.
13. Object Relation Mapping: Object Relation Mapping or ORM is a technique through which data which has a different type than specified is handled using OOPS concepts.
Laravel’s object relation mapping system helps the developers to connect the dots between database objects and relationships by writing easy and expressive syntax.
14. Community: Laravel has an amazing community of developers, essentially because the framework is an open-source framework.
Every year Laracon, the conference for Laravel is organised where several developers come in together, meet, network and build on their ideas.
If you are interested in attending one, here is the link to their official website.
Happy Learning!
By Pooja Gera
