PHP 7 Performance for Laravel

PHP 7 is the most significant PHP release in years. With the new Zend Engine 3.0, applications run twice as fast while using less memory. At ZIRA Software, we're upgrading all projects to PHP 7 for immediate performance gains.

Performance Improvements

Benchmark Comparisons (requests/second)
├── WordPress
│   ├── PHP 5.6: 106 req/s
│   └── PHP 7.0: 256 req/s (+142%)
├── Laravel 5.1
│   ├── PHP 5.6: 228 req/s
│   └── PHP 7.0: 510 req/s (+124%)
└── Drupal 8
    ├── PHP 5.6: 44 req/s
    └── PHP 7.0: 78 req/s (+77%)

Memory Usage
├── PHP 5.6: 428 MB
└── PHP 7.0: 219 MB (-49%)

New Language Features

Scalar Type Declarations

// Strict mode
declare(strict_types=1);

// Type declarations for parameters and return
function calculateTotal(float $price, int $quantity): float
{
    return $price * $quantity;
}

// Works in Laravel controllers
class OrderController extends Controller
{
    public function store(Request $request): JsonResponse
    {
        $order = Order::create($request->validated());

        return response()->json($order, 201);
    }
}

Return Type Declarations

class UserRepository
{
    public function find(int $id): ?User
    {
        return User::find($id);
    }

    public function all(): Collection
    {
        return User::all();
    }

    public function create(array $data): User
    {
        return User::create($data);
    }
}

Null Coalescing Operator

// Before PHP 7
$username = isset($_GET['user']) ? $_GET['user'] : 'guest';

// PHP 7
$username = $_GET['user'] ?? 'guest';

// Chained
$username = $_GET['user'] ?? $_POST['user'] ?? 'guest';

// In Laravel
$config = config('app.timezone') ?? 'UTC';
$value = $request->input('key') ?? $default;

Spaceship Operator

// Returns -1, 0, or 1
echo 1 <=> 2; // -1
echo 2 <=> 2; // 0
echo 3 <=> 2; // 1

// Perfect for sorting
$users = collect($users)->sort(function ($a, $b) {
    return $a->created_at <=> $b->created_at;
});

// Multiple criteria
usort($products, function ($a, $b) {
    return [$a->category, $a->price] <=> [$b->category, $b->price];
});

Anonymous Classes

// Quick one-off implementations
$logger = new class implements LoggerInterface {
    public function log($level, $message, array $context = [])
    {
        echo "[{$level}] {$message}\n";
    }
};

// In tests
$mock = new class extends PaymentGateway {
    public function charge($amount)
    {
        return true; // Always succeeds in tests
    }
};

Breaking Changes

// Removed functions
mysql_connect(); // Use PDO or mysqli
ereg(); // Use preg_match()
split(); // Use explode() or preg_split()

// Changed behavior
// Division by zero now returns INF or NAN instead of false
$result = 1 / 0; // INF (was false)

// list() assignment order changed
list($a, $b) = [1, 2]; // Now left-to-right

// Foreach no longer modifies internal pointer
foreach ($array as $value) {
    // current($array) behavior changed
}

Upgrading Laravel to PHP 7

# 1. Update composer.json
{
    "require": {
        "php": ">=7.0.0",
        "laravel/framework": "5.1.*"
    }
}

# 2. Run composer update
composer update

# 3. Check for deprecated function usage
grep -r "mysql_" app/
grep -r "ereg" app/
grep -r "split(" app/

# 4. Update PHP on server
sudo apt-get install php7.0-fpm php7.0-mysql php7.0-mcrypt

# 5. Update nginx/apache config
# Change: fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php5-fpm.sock
# To: fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php7.0-fpm.sock

PHP 7 Optimization Tips

// Use strict types for better performance
declare(strict_types=1);

// Type hints help opcache optimization
function process(array $items): array
{
    return array_map(fn($item) => $item * 2, $items);
}

// Enable OPcache in php.ini
// opcache.enable=1
// opcache.memory_consumption=128
// opcache.interned_strings_buffer=8
// opcache.max_accelerated_files=4000
// opcache.validate_timestamps=0 (production only)

Conclusion

PHP 7 delivers massive performance improvements with modern language features. Upgrading Laravel applications is straightforward and provides immediate benefits. The future of PHP has never looked brighter.

Need help upgrading to PHP 7? Contact ZIRA Software for migration assistance.