README

LitePHP is a lightweight PHP framework designed for building simple and efficient APIs. It provides a straightforward CLI tool for common development tasks and a minimalist structure for rapid API development.

Installation

Get started with LitePHP using Composer:

composer create-project nihad1213/litephp project_name

cd project_name

cp .env.example .env

php lite generate:key

php lite start

This will install LitePHP, navigate to your new project directory, copy .env.example file to .env, genereate JWT_SECRET key and start the built-in PHP development server.

CLI Commands

LitePHP comes with a built-in command-line interface to help you manage your development workflow. Here are the available commands:

Start Development Server

php lite start

Launches the PHP built-in development server at http://localhost:8000, serving files from the 'api' directory.

Generate JWT Secret Key

php lite key:generate

Creates or updates the JWT_SECRET in your .env file with a secure random key (32 bytes). This is essential for JWT-based authentication in your API.

Create a Controller

php lite create:controller UserController

Scaffolds a new controller in the 'controllers' directory with RESTful methods (getAll, getOne, create, update, delete) and basic validation.

Create a Gateway

php lite create:gateway UserGateway

Scaffolds a new gateway in the 'gateways' directory. Gateways handle database operations for specific entities, providing a clean separation between controllers and database logic.

Run Database Migrations

php lite db:migrate

Executes all SQL files in the 'database' directory in alphabetical order, allowing you to set up and modify your database schema.

Project Structure

project_name/
├── api/               # API endpoint directory (server root)
│   └── bootstrap.php  # Application initialization file
├── controllers/       # Controller classes for handling API requests
├── gateways/          # Data gateway classes for database operations
├── src/               # Source codes of api
├── database/          # SQL files for database migrations
├── .env               # Environment configuration
└── lite              # CLI tool for development tasks

Key Components

Controllers

Controllers handle HTTP requests and return appropriate responses. They are responsible for:

Processing incoming requests
Validating input data
Interacting with gateways to perform data operations
Returning appropriate HTTP responses

Each controller extends the BaseController class, which provides common response methods and utilities for handling API requests.

Controller Example

<?php

require_once __DIR__ . "/../api/bootstrap.php";

class TaskController extends BaseController
{
    /**
     * Constructor
     */
    public function __construct(private TaskGateway $gateway) {}

    /**
     * Get all tasks
     */
    #[Route(path: 'tasks', method: 'GET')]
    public function getAll(): void
    {
        echo json_encode($this->gateway->getAll());
    }

    /**
     * Get a specific task by ID
     */
    #[Route(path: 'tasks/{id}', method: 'GET')]
    public function getOne(string $id): void
    {
        $resource = $this->gateway->get($id);

        if (!$resource) {
            $this->respondNotFound($id);
            return;
        }

        echo json_encode($resource);
    }

    // Additional methods for create, update, delete...
}

Attribute-Based Routing

LitePHP uses PHP 8's attributes for routing. The #[Route] attribute defines:

The endpoint path
The HTTP method
Path parameters (using {parameter} syntax)

Gateways

Gateways provide an abstraction layer for database operations. Each gateway:

Handles CRUD operations for a specific database table
Uses PDO for secure database interactions
Returns structured data to controllers

Gateway Example

<?php

class TaskGateway
{
    private PDO $conn;

    public function __construct(Database $database)
    {
        $this->conn = $database->getConnect();
    }

    /**
     * Get all tasks
     * @return array
     */
    public function getAll(): array
    {
        $sql = "SELECT * FROM `tasks`";

        $stmt = $this->conn->query($sql);
        $data = [];

        while ($row = $stmt->fetch(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC)) {
            $data[] = $row;
        }

        return $data;
    }

    // Additional methods for get, create, update, delete...
}

Database

The database directory stores SQL migration files that can be executed with the db:migrate command. Example migration file:

-- database/01_create_tasks_table.sql
CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS `tasks` (
  `id` INT AUTO_INCREMENT PRIMARY KEY,
  `title` VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
  `description` TEXT,
  `status` VARCHAR(50) DEFAULT 'pending',
  `created_at` TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

Setting Up a Complete API Endpoint

1. Create the Database Table

Create an SQL file in the database directory:

-- database/01_create_users_table.sql
CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS `users` (
  `id` INT AUTO_INCREMENT PRIMARY KEY,
  `name` VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
  `email` VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
  `password` VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
  `created_at` TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

Run the migration:

php lite db:migrate

2. Create a Gateway

php lite create:gateway UserGateway

Then, update the generated gateway file:

<?php

class UserGateway
{
    private PDO $conn;

    public function __construct(Database $database)
    {
        $this->conn = $database->getConnect();
    }

    // Replace {tablename} with 'users' in all methods
    public function getAll(): array
    {
        $sql = "SELECT id, name, email, created_at FROM `users`";
        // Rest of the code...
    }
    
    // Customize other methods...
}

3. Create a Controller

php lite create:controller UserController

Then, update the generated controller:

<?php

require_once __DIR__ . "/../api/bootstrap.php";

class UserController extends BaseController
{
    public function __construct(private UserGateway $gateway) {}

    // Replace {route} with 'users' in all Route attributes
    #[Route(path: 'users', method: 'GET')]
    public function getAll(): void
    {
        echo json_encode($this->gateway->getAll());
    }
    
    // Customize validation for your entity
    private function getValidationErrors(array $data, bool $is_new = true): array
    {
        $errors = [];

        if ($is_new && empty($data['name'])) {
            $errors[] = "Name is required.";
        }

        if ($is_new && empty($data['email'])) {
            $errors[] = "Email is required.";
        }

        // Add more validation rules...

        return $errors;
    }
}

4. Access Your API

With your server running (php lite start), you can now access your API:

GET    http://localhost:8000/users          # Get all users
GET    http://localhost:8000/users/1        # Get user with ID 1
POST   http://localhost:8000/users          # Create a new user
PATCH  http://localhost:8000/users/1        # Update user with ID 1
DELETE http://localhost:8000/users/1        # Delete user with ID 1

Response Methods

The BaseController class provides several methods for returning standardized API responses:

respondNotFound($id): Returns a 404 error when a resource isn't found
respondUnprocessableEntity($errors): Returns a 422 error for validation failures
respondCreated($id): Returns a 201 status with the newly created resource's ID
respondInternalError($message): Returns a 500 error for server-side failures

Security Features

Parameter Binding: All database queries use prepared statements with parameter binding to prevent SQL injection.
JWT Authentication: Generate secure JWT keys with the key:generate command for token-based authentication.
Input Validation: Each controller includes validation methods to ensure data integrity.

Future Development

ORM Integration: An object-relational mapping system is planned for future releases to simplify database operations.
Additional CLI commands for more development tasks.
Extended middleware support.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to submit issues or pull requests to help improve LitePHP.

License

[MIT License]

Created By

Nihad Namatli

nihad1213 / litephp

Maintainers

Details