Development Settings Laravel Package

Getting Started

First Steps

1. Installation

   composer require mikebronner/development-settings
   

   Publish the config file:

   php artisan vendor:publish --provider="MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\DevelopmentSettingsServiceProvider" --tag="config"
   

2. Basic Configuration Edit config/development-settings.php to define:

   • repositories: Array of GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket repo URLs.
   • settings: Key-value pairs for your dev environment (e.g., database.connections.local.host).
   • sync_interval: How often to check for updates (in minutes).

3. First Use Case Define a setting in your config:

   // config/development-settings.php
   'settings' => [
       'app.debug' => true,
       'mail.mailers.local.host' => 'mailhog',
   ],
   

   Run the sync command:

   php artisan development-settings:sync
   

   The package will fetch the latest settings from your configured repositories and apply them to your .env file.

Implementation Patterns

Common Workflows

1. Repository-Based Sync

   • Store settings in a dedicated branch (e.g., dev-settings) or a specific file (e.g., .dev-settings.yml) in each repo.
   • Example .dev-settings.yml in a repo:

     app.debug: true
     queue.connections.local.driver: sync
     

   • The package parses these files and merges them into your local .env.

2. Conditional Overrides Use Laravel’s config caching to override settings dynamically:

   // config/app.php
   'debug' => env('APP_DEBUG', config('development-settings.app.debug', false)),
   

3. Environment-Specific Sync Run sync only in specific environments (e.g., local):

   php artisan development-settings:sync --env=local
   

4. Scheduled Syncs Add a cron job to auto-sync settings (e.g., every 5 minutes):

   * * * * * cd /path-to-project && php artisan development-settings:sync >> /dev/null 2>&1
   

5. Custom Sync Logic Extend the SyncSettings class to add logic (e.g., validate settings before applying):

   // app/Providers/DevelopmentSettingsServiceProvider.php
   use MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\SyncSettings;
   
   class DevelopmentSettingsServiceProvider extends ServiceProvider
   {
       public function register()
       {
           $this->app->singleton(SyncSettings::class, function ($app) {
               return new class extends SyncSettings {
                   protected function validateSettings(array $settings): array
                   {
                       // Custom validation logic
                       return $settings;
                   }
               };
           });
       }
   }
   

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. .env File Conflicts

   • The package overwrites .env values for keys defined in development-settings.php. Backup your .env before syncing.
   • Fix: Exclude sensitive keys (e.g., APP_KEY) from sync by prefixing them in config:

     'settings' => [
         '!APP_KEY' => env('APP_KEY'), // Skip sync for this key
     ],
     

2. Git Repository Access Issues

   • The package uses GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket APIs. Ensure:
     • Personal access tokens are configured in config/development-settings.php under auth.
     • Repos are public or the token has repo scope.
   • Fix: Use SSH keys for private repos (requires customizing the GitRepository class).

3. Caching Quirks

   • Laravel’s config cache (php artisan config:cache) may not reflect new settings immediately.
   • Fix: Clear the cache after syncing:

     php artisan config:clear
     

4. Merge Conflicts

   • If .env has manual overrides, they may be lost during sync.
   • Fix: Use ! prefix to exclude keys or manually merge after sync.

5. Performance with Many Repos

   • Syncing 10+ repos can be slow. Use sync_interval to throttle requests.

Debugging Tips

• Enable verbose output:

  php artisan development-settings:sync --verbose
  

• Check raw settings before applying:

  // In a Tinker session:
  $settings = app(\MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\SyncSettings::class)->getSettings();
  dd($settings);
  

• Test locally with a dummy repo first.

Extension Points

1. Custom Data Sources Extend MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\DataSources\DataSourceInterface to pull settings from:

   • A database table.
   • An external API.
   • A shared network drive.

2. Post-Sync Hooks Add logic after sync via the synced event:

   // In EventServiceProvider
   protected $listen = [
       \MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\Events\SettingsSynced::class => [
          \App\Listeners\RestartServices::class,
      ],
   ];
   

3. UI Integration Build a dashboard to view sync status or manually trigger syncs:

   Route::get('/dev-settings', function () {
       return response()->json(app(\MikeBronner\DevelopmentSettings\SyncSettings::class)->getLastSync());
   });