- How do I install Laradocs in a Laravel application?
- Install it with Composer using composer require petebishwhip/laradocs; the package supports Laravel auto-discovery, so you normally do not need to register a service provider manually. The expected setup flow is to publish the config, views and assets, drop your Markdown files into the configured content directory, then open the docs routes under the configured prefix. Run through this in a non-production environment first so you can confirm the route prefix and published assets.
- Which Laravel and PHP versions does Laradocs support?
- Laradocs is intended for Laravel 10, 11 and 12 on PHP 8.2 or newer, and it installs as a standard Composer package with auto-discovery. Because dependency constraints can move between minor releases, pin the package to ^1.2.1 rather than a floating constraint and check composer.json before upgrading. The v1.2.1 release specifically expands compatibility to laravel/mcp v1.0.
- Where do I put my Markdown files and how are pages organised?
- You write documentation as Markdown inside the content directory defined in the package config, and Laradocs renders it as a docs site with navigation. Pages are grouped into sections so the sidebar mirrors your documentation structure rather than a flat file list. The exact directory name and any per-page metadata options are set in the published config and README, so review those after publishing.
- Does Laradocs include search, or do I need an external search service?
- Laradocs ships with search as part of its documentation UI, so there is no separate search service or indexing infrastructure to run. That makes it a good fit for a single application or team corpus. If you need search across multiple products or very large documentation sets, validate scope and performance before committing, since the package is a docs viewer rather than a full docs platform.
- Can I change the URL prefix where the docs site is served?
- Yes, Laradocs exposes its routes under a configurable prefix set in the package config file. Change that value after publishing the config and clear your route cache. Because a docs site can expose internal runbooks or architecture notes, also confirm the routes sit behind your existing auth middleware where appropriate.
- Is the MCP endpoint enabled by default and how do I secure it?
- Laradocs includes an MCP surface so AI agents and tooling can query the documentation corpus, and v1.2.1 adds support for laravel/mcp v1.0. Whether that endpoint is opt-in or on by default, and which authorization hook it exposes, should be verified in the config before deploying. Treat anything built on the MCP endpoint as experimental while laravel/mcp and the protocol are still settling.
- Does Laradocs need a database, Node build step, or extra infrastructure?
- No extra infrastructure is expected: documentation is markdown-backed and served through Laravel routes with an Inertia-based UI, and no database migrations are anticipated for the viewer, though you should verify that during install. There is no separate docs site, static-site generator or search service to deploy. Front-end assets are published from the package rather than produced by your own Node pipeline.
- Can I customise the look of the Laradocs documentation site?
- Yes, Laradocs is described as customizable, and the setup flow includes publishing views and assets, which is where you would adjust layout, styling and components. Publish them into your app and commit the changes so upgrades are explicit rather than silent overwrites. Check the documented upgrade path for published assets between minor versions before bumping the package.
- Does Laradocs use commercially licensed Inertia UI components?
- Laradocs renders its front end with Inertia, and its changelog credits inertiaui.com, so confirm which components are used and whether any require a paid or pro licence. This is a procurement question rather than a technical one, but it should be resolved before adoption. Inspect the published views and dependency list to verify licensing.
- Is Laradocs safe to rely on long term, and what are the alternatives?
- Laradocs is a single-maintainer package with low release velocity, which is fine for a documentation viewer but risky if it becomes the only path to internal documentation, so treat it as replaceable by design. Pin it to ^1.2.1 so the laravel/mcp dependency floor does not move unexpectedly. If you need versioned docs, multi-product navigation or search at scale, compare it against a static-site generator or a dedicated docs platform before committing.