Solo Dumps for Laravel

Solo Dumps for Laravel is a package that intercepts and collects dump() calls from your Laravel application and displays them in a dedicated terminal window. This eliminates the need to clutter your browser or API responses with debug output.

This library was built to support Solo, your all-in-one Laravel command to tame local development.

This package is especially useful when:

• You're working with APIs where you can't see dumps in the browser
• You want to keep your browser console clean
• You want to centralize all your debugging output in one place
• You need source file information for your dumps

Installation

1. Require the package:

composer require soloterm/dumps --dev

The package will automatically register the service provider.

Usage

Simply run:

php artisan solo:dumps

This will start a server that intercepts all dump() calls from your Laravel application. The command will keep running and display any dumps in real-time.

Now when you use dump() anywhere in your application, the output will be sent to this terminal window instead of your browser or API response.

Features

• Intercepts all dump() calls from your Laravel application
• Shows the exact file and line number where the dump was called
• Formats the output using Laravel's CLI dumper for better readability
• Works with APIs, background jobs, and other contexts where dumps are normally hard to see
• Preserves all the functionality of Laravel's dump helper
• Restores regular dump functionality when the command is stopped

Works with Solo for Laravel

If you're using Solo for Laravel, you can add the dumps command to your configuration:

// config/solo.php

'commands' => [
    // ... other commands
    'Dumps' => 'php artisan solo:dumps',
],

Configuration

You can configure the dump server host in your config/solo.php file:

// config/solo.php

return [
    // ... other configurations
    'dump_server_host' => 'tcp://127.0.0.1:9984',
];

There is no dedicated dumps config file. You can either create a solo.php and put the dump_server_host in there, or add it to your existing solo.php file.

How It Works

The package works by:

1. Registering a custom var dumper handler that captures dump calls
2. Resolving the source file and line number of the dump before sending to the server
3. Sending the dump data to a server running in a separate process
4. Displaying the formatted dump with source information in the terminal

FAQ

Does this work with dd()?

No, this package only intercepts dump() calls. The dd() function will still halt execution as normal.

Can I use this with APIs?

Yes! This is one of the main benefits. Your API responses will remain clean while all dumps go to the dedicated terminal window.

Will this affect my application in production?

The package is designed to be used in development only. It's recommended to install it with the --dev flag to ensure it's not included in production.

Support

This is free! If you want to support me:

• Sponsor my open source work: aaronfrancis.com/backstage
• Check out my courses:
  • Mastering Postgres
  • High Performance SQLite
  • Screencasting
• Help spread the word about things I make

Credits

Dumps for Laravel was developed by Aaron Francis. If you like it, please let me know!

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/aarondfrancis
• Website: https://aaronfrancis.com
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@aarondfrancis
• GitHub: https://github.com/aarondfrancis