Migrations

Tables as code

Migrations define your tables in PHP files instead of clicking around in phpMyAdmin. They are version-controlled, so your whole team builds the same database with one command.

php artisan make:migration create_products_table

This creates a new, empty migration file inside database/migrations with a timestamp in its name (so migrations always run in the order you made them). Next you open that file and describe the columns your table should have.

Inside the file is an up() method — the code that runs when you build the table. Each line adds one column:

// database/migrations/...create_products_table.php
public function up()
{
    Schema::create('products', function (Blueprint $table) {
        $table->id();
        $table->string('name');
        $table->decimal('price', 8, 2);
        $table->boolean('in_stock')->default(true);
        $table->timestamps();
    });
}

Reading the columns: $table->id() adds an auto-incrementing primary key. $table->string('name') adds a text column for the product name. $table->decimal('price', 8, 2) adds a price with up to 8 digits, 2 after the decimal point. $table->boolean('in_stock')->default(true) adds a true/false column that defaults to true. $table->timestamps() adds created_at and updated_at columns automatically. You are describing the table in plain PHP instead of writing CREATE TABLE SQL by hand.

Once the file describes your table, these commands build it (or undo it) in the real database:

php artisan migrate          # create the tables
php artisan migrate:rollback # undo the last batch

The whole migration workflow, in order:

1. Run php artisan make:migration create_products_table to generate an empty migration file.
2. Open that file and describe your columns inside the up() method.
3. Set your database name and login details in the .env file so Laravel can connect.
4. Run php artisan migrate — Laravel reads your file and creates the real table.
5. If you made a mistake, run php artisan migrate:rollback to undo the last batch, fix the file, then migrate again.