Laravel is a web framework used for developing web systems, i.e. websites that are not websites. For example, CRM or other portals.
Laravel is the most popular PHP framework and a good choice for developing smaller web systems due to less configuration time compared to other frameworks.
The latest version of Laravel is Laravel 11, which was released on March 12, 2024. This version includes several new features and updates that improve the framework’s functionality and performance.
Key Features in Laravel 11:
SQLite as Default
Laravel 11 uses SQLite as the default database for storage, making it easier to quickly get started with new projects without having to install additional database software.
PHP 8.1 Support Removal
Laravel 11 no longer supports PHP 8.1, as PHP 8.2 and PHP 8.3 are the stable versions at the time of release. This means that developers will need to upgrade their PHP versions to use Laravel 11.
Laravel Reverb
Introduction of Laravel Reverb which offers high speed and scalable real-time WebSocket communication directly into Laravel applications. This integrates seamlessly with Laravel’s existing event dispatching tools such as Laravel Echo.
Improved Typing and Return Types
Laravel 11 continues to improve typing by adding argument and return types to all application skeleton methods and stub files used to generate classes in the framework.
Improved Process Management
A new, developer-friendly abstraction layer for launching and interacting with external processes has been introduced, simplifying the management of these processes in the application. (Laravel).
To upgrade to Laravel 11, it is recommended to follow the official upgrade guide and perform thorough testing to ensure that your application works as it should after the upgrade. You can also use the Laravel Shift tool to automate parts of the upgrade process. If you lack Laravel skills, what do you do?
Yes…we have several senior developers within the Laravel framework, if you need help with an upgrade or anything else, please contact us.