- How do I install Lambo globally with Composer?
- Install it as a global Composer binary with composer global require tightenco/lambo, pinning a version such as 3.1.1 for reproducibility. Make sure your global Composer bin directory is on your PATH so the lambo command resolves. Then run lambo new instead of laravel new to get the interactive scaffolding prompts.
- Does Lambo work with Laravel 11 and current PHP versions?
- Lambo's last release dates to August 2023, so it targets the Laravel 10 era skeleton and prompts. Laravel 11's trimmed application skeleton and reworked starter kits postdate that release, so scaffolding output may not match what you expect. Always create a throwaway project first and verify it survives composer update and a first deploy before standardizing on it.
- Is tightenco/lambo still maintained?
- The upstream repository is archived, so there is no issue triage and no security response path. That matters because Lambo shells out to mysql, valet, and git, and touches local databases and credentials. Pin the version you install, keep it out of composer.json, and treat it as a swappable convenience wrapper rather than a long-term dependency.
- Why does Lambo hang or never finish when run in CI or a script?
- Lambo relies on interactive prompts, and prompts block indefinitely in non-TTY contexts such as CI pipelines or piped shell scripts. Pass explicit flags where available or run it only from an interactive terminal. If you need repeatable automation, wrap it in a checked-in script that supplies answers up front rather than calling it blind.
- Can I use Lambo with Laravel Sail, Docker, or Laravel Herd?
- Lambo is built around a macOS plus Valet workflow, including host-level MySQL database creation and valet link and secure calls. In Sail or container setups that model is actively wrong, and Herd users mostly get redundant work. Linux, Windows, and WSL are effectively unsupported, so scope it to one well-defined workstation profile rather than a team-wide standard.
- How do I customize Lambo's defaults, presets, and prompts?
- Run lambo edit to open the global config file and set your preferred database, testing framework, frontend, and editor defaults. You can also capture repeatable recipes as aliases or presets so each project type scaffolds the same way. For anything shared across a team, externalize the recipe into a checked-in bin/new script that calls Lambo with explicit flags.
- Does Lambo create the MySQL database for me, and what happens if that fails?
- Yes, Lambo shells out to the local mysql binary to create the database as part of scaffolding. Failures can be quiet, leaving a project that looks correct but points at a database that does not exist. Confirm the database exists and that your .env credentials match before you start building, and watch for name collisions on repeated runs.
- How do I stop Lambo from silently skipping the editor or browser launch?
- Lambo launches your editor using the EDITOR or LAMBO_EDITOR environment variable and opens the browser against the Valet hostname. If neither variable is set, the editor step silently no-ops instead of erroring. Export EDITOR in your shell profile so every scaffold behaves the same way.
- Should Lambo be added to composer.json or used in CI?
- No, Lambo is a developer-experience CLI that wraps laravel new, not a runtime dependency. Keeping it out of composer.json means it adds no surface to shipped artifacts and cannot affect production. Keep it out of CI paths too, since its interactive prompts and host-level side effects do not belong in a pipeline.
- Is Lambo still worth using over laravel new, and what is the migration path?
- Most of Lambo's differentiators, including starter kit prompts, test framework choice, and extensions, have largely been absorbed by the Laravel installer. If you adopt it, pin the version, capture the recipe in a checked-in script, and plan an exit. The recommended replacement is a private laravel new --using installer package that you version and test like any other code.