Getting Started

In this tutorial you will build a simple blog post manager using Laravel. This is a classic school-project style application: you list posts, create them, edit them, and delete them.

1. Create the project

composer create-project laravel/laravel blog
cd blog
php artisan migrate

The migrate command sets up the default tables using the SQLite database configured in your .env file.

Why this matters: Running migrations create a clean, version-controlled database schema every time.

2. Create the Post model and migration

php artisan make:model Post -m

Open the migration file and add your columns:

Schema::create('posts', function (Blueprint $table) {
    $table->id();
    $table->string('title');
    $table->text('body');
    $table->timestamps();
});

Then run php artisan migrate again to create the posts table.

3. Generate the controller

php artisan make:controller PostController --resource

A resource controller gives you index, create, store, show, edit, update, and destroy methods.

4. Add the routes

Route::resource('posts', PostController::class);

This single line creates all seven RESTful routes for posts.

5. Implement the controller methods

public function index()
{
    $posts = Post::all();
    return view('posts.index', ['posts' => $posts]);
}

public function store(Request $request)
{
    $validated = $request->validate([
        'title' => 'required|string|max:255',
        'body'  => 'required|string',
    ]);

    Post::create($validated);

    return redirect()->route('posts.index');
}

Validation is essential — never trust user input. The validate() call guarantees title and body are present and correctly typed before anything is saved.

6. Build the views

Create resources/views/posts/index.blade.php:

@foreach ($posts as $post)
    <div>
        <h2>{{ $post->title }}</h2>
        <p>{{ $post->body }}</p>
        <a href="{{ route('posts.edit', $post) }}">Edit</a>
        <form method="POST" action="{{ route('posts.destroy', $post) }}">
            @csrf
            @method('DELETE')
            <button type="submit">Delete</button>
        </form>
    </div>
@endforeach

Notice the @csrf directive — this is Laravel's built-in protection against cross-site request forgery.

7. Test your application

Run the development server and try adding, editing, and deleting posts.

php artisan serve

Wrapping up

You have built a complete CRUD application. Try extending it by adding authentication, categories, or search — great additions for a school project.