The Power of Docker for Local Laravel Development

Docker has revolutionized the way developers set up and manage their local development environments, especially for Laravel applications. This guide will walk you through the process of creating a streamlined Docker setup for your Laravel projects, offering flexibility and ease of use.

Why Docker?

Docker allows you to package your application and its dependencies into containers, ensuring consistency across different environments. For Laravel developers, this means:

1. Easy management of multiple projects with different PHP versions

2. Isolation of environments to prevent conflicts

3. Quick setup and teardown of development environments

4. Replication of production environments locally

Setting Up Your Docker Environment

To get started, you'll need to install Docker on your machine. Once installed, create a project structure like this:

my-project.com/
├── nginx/
│   └── default.conf
├── src/
│   └── (Laravel app files)
├── docker-compose.yml
└── Dockerfile

Creating the Docker Compose File

The docker-compose.yml file is the heart of your Docker setup. It defines the services that make up your application stack. Here's a basic structure:

version: '3'
networks:
  laravel:
services:
  # Services will be defined here

Adding Nginx

Add the following Nginx service to your docker-compose.yml:

nginx:
  image: nginx:stable-alpine
  container_name: nginx
  ports:
    - "8080:80"
  volumes:
    - ./src:/var/www
    - ./nginx/default.conf:/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf
  depends_on:
    - php
    - mysql
  networks:
    - laravel

This sets up an Nginx container using the Alpine Linux image, maps ports, and links volumes.

Adding MySQL

Next, add the MySQL service:

mysql:
  image: mysql:5.7.29
  container_name: mysql
  restart: unless-stopped
  tty: true
  ports:
    - "3306:3306"
  environment:
    MYSQL_DATABASE: homestead
    MYSQL_USER: homestead
    MYSQL_PASSWORD: secret
    MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: secret
    SERVICE_TAGS: dev
    SERVICE_NAME: mysql
  networks:
    - laravel

This sets up a MySQL 5.7 container with default Laravel credentials.

Adding PHP

For PHP, we'll create a custom image. Add this to your docker-compose.yml:

php:
  build:
    context: .
    dockerfile: Dockerfile
  container_name: php
  volumes:
    - ./src:/var/www
  ports:
    - "9000:9000"
  networks:
    - laravel

Then, create a Dockerfile in your project root:

FROM php:7.2-fpm-alpine
RUN docker-php-ext-install pdo pdo_mysql

This sets up a PHP-FPM container with necessary extensions for Laravel.

Configuring Nginx

In your nginx/default.conf file, add a basic Nginx configuration for Laravel:

server {
    listen 80;
    index index.php index.html;
    server_name localhost;
    error_log  /var/log/nginx/error.log;
    access_log /var/log/nginx/access.log;
    root /var/www/public;
    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
    }
    location ~ \.php$ {
        try_files $uri =404;
        fastcgi_split_path_info ^(.+\.php)(/.+)$;
        fastcgi_pass php:9000;
        fastcgi_index index.php;
        include fastcgi_params;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        fastcgi_param PATH_INFO $fastcgi_path_info;
    }
}

Starting Your Docker Environment

To start your Docker environment, run:

docker-compose build
docker-compose up -d

This builds the custom PHP image and starts all containers in detached mode.

Configuring Laravel

Update your Laravel .env file:

DB_HOST=mysql
APP_URL=http://localhost:8080

Accessing Your Application

Your Laravel application should now be accessible at http://localhost:8080.

Running Laravel Commands

To run Laravel commands, use:

docker-compose exec php php /var/www/artisan migrate

This executes the command within the PHP container.

Conclusion

Docker provides a powerful, flexible environment for Laravel development. While it may have a slight performance trade-off compared to bare-metal setups, the benefits of consistency, isolation, and ease of use make it an excellent choice for many developers.