Laravel 5.4 Features Guide

Laravel 5.4 continues refining the framework with Markdown mail, improved testing with Dusk, and quality-of-life improvements. At ZIRA Software, we've upgraded all projects to take advantage of these features.

Markdown Mail

// Create Markdown mailable
php artisan make:mail OrderConfirmation --markdown=emails.orders.confirmation

// app/Mail/OrderConfirmation.php
class OrderConfirmation extends Mailable
{
    use Queueable, SerializesModels;

    public $order;

    public function __construct(Order $order)
    {
        $this->order = $order;
    }

    public function build()
    {
        return $this->markdown('emails.orders.confirmation')
            ->subject('Order #' . $this->order->id . ' Confirmed');
    }
}

{{-- resources/views/emails/orders/confirmation.blade.php --}}
@component('mail::message')
# Order Confirmed

Thank you for your order, {{ $order->customer->name }}!

**Order Number:** {{ $order->id }}
**Date:** {{ $order->created_at->format('M d, Y') }}

@component('mail::table')
| Item | Qty | Price |
|:-----|:---:|------:|
@foreach($order->items as $item)
| {{ $item->name }} | {{ $item->quantity }} | ${{ number_format($item->price, 2) }} |
@endforeach
| **Total** | | **${{ number_format($order->total, 2) }}** |
@endcomponent

@component('mail::button', ['url' => route('orders.show', $order)])
View Order
@endcomponent

Thanks,<br>
{{ config('app.name') }}
@endcomponent

Laravel Dusk

composer require --dev laravel/dusk
php artisan dusk:install

// tests/Browser/LoginTest.php
class LoginTest extends DuskTestCase
{
    public function test_user_can_login()
    {
        $user = User::factory()->create();

        $this->browse(function (Browser $browser) use ($user) {
            $browser->visit('/login')
                ->type('email', $user->email)
                ->type('password', 'password')
                ->press('Login')
                ->assertPathIs('/dashboard')
                ->assertSee('Welcome back');
        });
    }

    public function test_user_cannot_login_with_invalid_credentials()
    {
        $this->browse(function (Browser $browser) {
            $browser->visit('/login')
                ->type('email', 'invalid@example.com')
                ->type('password', 'wrong-password')
                ->press('Login')
                ->assertPathIs('/login')
                ->assertSee('These credentials do not match');
        });
    }
}

// Run tests
php artisan dusk

Higher-Order Collection Messages

// Before 5.4
$users->each(function ($user) {
    $user->notify(new WelcomeNotification);
});

// Laravel 5.4 - Higher-order messages
$users->each->notify(new WelcomeNotification);

// More examples
$posts->each->publish();
$orders->each->markAsShipped();

// Filter with higher-order
$activeUsers = $users->filter->isActive();
$publishedPosts = $posts->filter->isPublished();

// Reject
$pendingOrders = $orders->reject->isComplete();

// Map
$userNames = $users->map->name;
$orderTotals = $orders->map->total;

// Sum
$totalRevenue = $orders->sum->total;

Route Model Binding Improvements

// Custom key for route binding
Route::get('posts/{post:slug}', function (Post $post) {
    return $post;
});

// Scoped bindings
Route::get('users/{user}/posts/{post:slug}', function (User $user, Post $post) {
    // $post is automatically scoped to $user
    return $post;
});

// In model - customize route key name
class Post extends Model
{
    public function getRouteKeyName()
    {
        return 'slug';
    }

    // Customize resolution logic
    public function resolveRouteBinding($value, $field = null)
    {
        return $this->where($field ?? $this->getRouteKeyName(), $value)
            ->where('published', true)
            ->firstOrFail();
    }
}

Real-Time Facades

// Generate facade on the fly
use Facades\App\Services\PaymentGateway;

class OrderController extends Controller
{
    public function store(Request $request)
    {
        // Use as facade without registration
        PaymentGateway::charge($request->amount);
    }
}

// Easy mocking in tests
public function test_order_charges_payment()
{
    PaymentGateway::shouldReceive('charge')
        ->once()
        ->with(100)
        ->andReturn(true);

    $response = $this->post('/orders', ['amount' => 100]);

    $response->assertStatus(200);
}

JSON Resources

// Transform models for API responses
public function index()
{
    return User::all()->map(function ($user) {
        return [
            'id' => $user->id,
            'name' => $user->name,
            'email' => $user->email,
            'member_since' => $user->created_at->diffForHumans(),
        ];
    });
}

Conclusion

Laravel 5.4 brings Markdown mail for beautiful emails, Dusk for browser testing, and higher-order collection messages for cleaner code. Each feature improves developer productivity.

Upgrading to Laravel 5.4? Contact ZIRA Software for migration assistance.