Laravel Upgrade

Upgrade Laravel applications one major version at a time. Supports: 9→10, 10→11, 11→12.

Workflow

1. Detect Current Version

Read composer.json and find the laravel/framework version constraint:

// Example: "laravel/framework": "^10.0" means Laravel 10.x

Determine target version (current + 1). If already on Laravel 12, inform user they're on the latest supported version.

2. Load Upgrade Guide

Based on detected versions, read the appropriate reference file:

3. Scan and Fix

For each breaking change in the guide, scan the codebase and apply fixes:

High Impact (always check):

• composer.json dependency versions
• PHP version requirements
• Database migrations using deprecated methods

Medium Impact (check relevant files):

• Model $dates property → $casts (9→10)
• Database expressions with (string) casting (9→10)
• Column modification migrations missing attributes (10→11)
• HasUuids trait behavior change (11→12)

Low Impact (check if patterns found):

• Deprecated method calls (Bus::dispatchNow, Redirect::home, etc.)
• Contract interface changes
• Configuration file updates

4. Update Dependencies

After code fixes, update composer.json:

# Update laravel/framework constraint to target version
# Update related packages per upgrade guide
composer update

5. Post-Upgrade Verification

• Run php artisan to verify framework boots
• Run test suite if available
• Check for deprecation warnings in logs

Common Patterns

Dependency Updates (all upgrades)

Search composer.json for outdated constraints and update per guide.

Model $dates to $casts (9→10)

// Before
protected $dates = ['deployed_at'];

// After
protected $casts = ['deployed_at' => 'datetime'];

Search pattern: protected \$dates\s*=

Database Expression Casting (9→10)

// Before
$string = (string) DB::raw('select 1');

// After
$string = DB::raw('select 1')->getValue(DB::connection()->getQueryGrammar());

Column Modification (10→11)

Migrations using ->change() must now include all modifiers:

// Before (implicit retention)
$table->integer('votes')->nullable()->change();

// After (explicit)
$table->integer('votes')->unsigned()->default(1)->nullable()->change();

HasUuids Trait (11→12)

// Before (ordered UUIDv4)
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Concerns\HasUuids;

// After (if you need UUIDv4 behavior)
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Concerns\HasVersion4Uuids as HasUuids;