- What is dragon-code/laravel-routes-core used for?
- It is the shared foundation package behind Dragon Code's Laravel routing packages. It supplies reusable primitives for registering routes, collecting and normalizing route definitions, and resolving them through Laravel's routing layer. It is designed primarily as a dependency for companion packages rather than as a standalone tool for application code.
- Can I use dragon-code/laravel-routes-core directly in a Laravel application?
- Technically yes, but it is not the intended use case. Laravel's native routing surface, including the Route facade, RouteServiceProvider, Route::macro, and route caching, already covers most application needs. Only reach for this package if you are deliberately building or maintaining a suite of route-oriented packages and want a shared contract layer beneath them.
- How do I install dragon-code/laravel-routes-core with Composer?
- Install it with composer require dragon-code/laravel-routes-core, exactly as you would any other Laravel package. It is MIT licensed, Composer-installable, and has a small surface area with no external services or native extensions to configure. That said, because it is a dependency package, it will usually arrive automatically when you install a Dragon Code routing package that requires it.
- Which Laravel and PHP versions does laravel-routes-core support?
- Release 5.4.0 added Laravel 13 compatibility, confirming the maintainer still performs framework-major updates. You should check the composer.json constraints for the exact illuminate/support and PHP bounds before upgrading, because a minor version bump can raise the minimum floor. If you are still on Laravel 11 or 12, verify whether backward compatibility is retained or whether the constraint floor was lifted.
- Does laravel-routes-core register a service provider or publish config?
- The package is described as lightweight integration with Laravel's routing layer, built around extensible contracts for custom route handling rather than application-facing configuration. Whether it ships a service provider, publishes a config file, or exposes contracts your code must implement should be confirmed by reading composer.json and the source before you commit to it. Its public surface is not documented as a stable API, so treat it as an internal contract layer.
- Is dragon-code/laravel-routes-core still maintained?
- The 5.4.0 release, which adds Laravel 13 support, is a meaningful maintenance signal and shows the repository is not frozen. The cadence is reactive rather than continuous: outside framework-major compatibility work, recent changes are bot-generated housekeeping such as logo, banner, and README updates. Every substantive change in that release came from a single author, so the bus factor is unchanged.
- Is laravel-routes-core safe to depend on in production?
- It is mechanically low risk: MIT licensed, small, and free of external services or native extensions. The validation risk is higher, with roughly 3 stars, 0 dependents, no third-party bug reports, and no field testing, meaning your team would be the first real consumer. Routing sits on the critical path for every request, so if you adopt it, consider a vendored fork to keep durable control over the routing path.
- What does laravel-routes-core add over native Laravel routing?
- Native Laravel gives you route registration, grouping, the Route facade, macros, and route caching, which covers the overwhelming majority of product needs. This package adds a reusable contract and normalization layer that keeps multiple routing packages consistent without duplicating framework glue. If you cannot state the capability difference for your project in one sentence, there is no case for adding it, and mainstream Laravel routing plus route attributes or helper packages remain the sensible alternatives.
- Is it a good choice for building my own route package?
- Yes, that is exactly its purpose: a shared foundation so sibling packages for route attributes, helpers, and caching utilities stay consistent. The trade-off is that the surface is not documented with a stability guarantee, so you should pin versions and read the source. Also confirm that the consuming Dragon Code packages you rely on are themselves maintained and Laravel 13-ready, so the core does not outrun them.
- What license does laravel-routes-core use, and can I fork it?
- It is released under the MIT license, which permits commercial use, modification, and redistribution with attribution. That makes an internal vendored fork a realistic option if you need guaranteed control over the routing path. A fork does mean you own framework-major compatibility work yourself, so weigh that against simply pinning the upstream package.