Laravel is one of the most popular PHP frameworks, renowned for its expressive syntax, powerful tools, and extensive feature set. Whether you're building small-scale applications or large enterprise systems, Laravel provides everything you need to create seamless, modern web experiences.
In this step-by-step guide, we’ll help you get started with Laravel 11 by covering the installation of essential tools like PHP, Composer, and MySQL. We'll also walk you through setting up Laravel using XAMPP, configuring the environment, and creating your first "Hello World" application. This guide is perfect for beginners who want a hands-on introduction to Laravel development.
Step 1: Install XAMPP
First, ensure that XAMPP is installed and running on your system:
- Download XAMPP from https://www.apachefriends.org/.
- Install and start Apache and MySQL servers via the XAMPP control panel.
Step 2: Install Composer
Laravel requires Composer, a dependency manager for PHP. Here's how to install it:
- Download Composer from https://getcomposer.org/download/.
- Follow the installation instructions to install Composer globally.
To confirm the installation, open the command prompt (or terminal) and run:
composer --version
If Composer is installed, you'll see the version number.
Step 3: Create a Laravel Project
Open your command prompt or terminal and navigate to the htdocs directory in your XAMPP installation. This directory is where your website files will reside (default path: C:\xampp\htdocs).
Run the following command to create a new Laravel project:
composer create-project --prefer-dist laravel/laravel helloworld
This will create a folder named helloworld with a fresh Laravel installation.
Step 4: Set Up the Environment
Navigate to the project folder:
cd helloworld
In this folder, there’s a .env file. This file contains the environment variables for the Laravel project. Since you're using XAMPP, make sure to set the database connection for MySQL.
Open the .env file and configure the database settings:
DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=yourdatabase
DB_USERNAME=yourdbusername
DB_PASSWORD=
Ensure that the DB_DATABASE exists in your MySQL database (you can create one via phpMyAdmin).
Step 5: Start the Development Server
Run the following command to start Laravel’s built-in development server:
php artisan serve
By default, this will start the server on http://localhost:8000.
Step 6: Create a Route and Controller for "Hello World"
Open routes/web.php and add the following route:
Route::get('/', function () {
return 'Hello World';
});
Step 7: Access the Laravel Application
Open your browser and navigate to http://localhost:8000 to see "Hello World" displayed on the page.
Step 8: Conclusion
Now you've set up a basic Laravel "Hello World" application using XAMPP. You can expand this by adding views, database connections, and more features as needed.
This should guide you through creating a simple Laravel project using XAMPP. Happy coding!
Top comments (0)