Laravel Module Generator

v 1.3.*

Generation commands

Generate a complete module set using the default YAML file:

php artisan module:generate

Key options and examples:

  • Overwrite all generated files (use with caution):
    php artisan module:generate --force
  • Use a custom YAML file:
    php artisan module:generate --file=custom/path/models.yaml
  • Skip Postman collection generation:
    php artisan module:generate --skip-postman
  • Skip DB diagram generation:
    php artisan module:generate --skip-dbdiagram
  • Custom Postman settings:
    php artisan module:generate \
  --postman-base-url=https://api.myapp.com \
  --postman-prefix=api/v1

Available CLI Commands

module:generate — Main module generation command

Generate complete API modules (Model, Migration, Controller, Service, Resource, Collection, Form Request, and Routes) from your YAML schema.

Signature:

php artisan module:generate
    {--file= : Path to the YAML schema file}
    {--force : Overwrite existing files without prompting}
    {--skip-backup : Skip creating backups of existing files}
    {--skip-postman : Skip Postman collection generation}
    {--skip-dbdiagram : Skip DB diagram generation}
    {--postman-base-url= : Base URL for Postman requests}
    {--postman-prefix= : API prefix for Postman requests}

Options:

  • --file=path/to/file.yaml — Specify custom YAML file (default: module/models.yaml)
  • --force — Overwrite existing files without confirmation prompt
  • --skip-backup — Skip creating backups (only use if you have Git version control)
  • --skip-postman — Skip Postman collection generation
  • --skip-dbdiagram — Skip DB diagram generation
  • --postman-base-url=http://localhost:8000 — Set base URL for Postman collection
  • --postman-prefix=api/v1 — Set API prefix for Postman requests

Examples:

# Generate with default settings (will ask before overwriting)
php artisan module:generate

# Generate with custom file and force overwrite
php artisan module:generate --file=schemas/products.yaml --force

# Generate everything with custom Postman settings
php artisan module:generate \
  --postman-base-url=https://api.myapp.com \
  --postman-prefix=api/v2

# Generate models/migrations only (skip Postman and DB diagram)
php artisan module:generate --skip-postman --skip-dbdiagram

# Generate without creating backups (use if already committing to Git)
php artisan module:generate --force --skip-backup

Tips, gotchas, and troubleshooting

  • Auth module conflicts: If you previously ran php artisan auth:generate, set User.generate_only: seeder in your YAML to avoid overwriting hand-tuned auth scaffolding.
  • Foreign key naming: Double-check foreignId:table values — the generator uses the provided table names to wire up migration columns and relations.
  • Migration conflicts: If a generated migration conflicts with an existing migration, prefer using a new migration to alter the table instead of blindly overwriting.
  • Version control: Use Git branches before running --force to make it easy to compare and revert changes.
  • Production safety: Always review generated migrations and validation rules before applying them to production environments.
  • Schema versioning: Keep your YAML schema under version control and update it as your data model evolves.
  • Backup management: Use --skip-backup only if you have Git commits and are comfortable with manual rollbacks.
  • File uploads: Models with image or file fields automatically generate form-data Postman requests instead of JSON.
  • Nested requests: Use nested_requests to specify which relations should appear in Postman request bodies. This prevents circular reference issues.
  • Relation naming: Special relation names like creator, updater, parent automatically map to the correct foreign keys (created_by, updated_by, parent_id).

Happy generating — once your YAML is shaped the generator handles repetitive boilerplate so you can focus on business logic.

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