Laravel Wayfinder

A powerful VS Code extension that enhances navigation within Laravel projects, providing seamless bidirectional jumping between routes, controllers, views, and Blade directives. It integrates deeply with Laravel's structure to boost productivity for developers working on Laravel applications.

Features

Laravel Wayfinder offers a comprehensive set of navigation features designed to streamline Laravel development:

Core Navigation Commands

• Jump to Controller (laravel-wayfinder.jumpToController): From a route definition, jump directly to the corresponding controller method.
• Jump to View (laravel-wayfinder.jumpToView): From a controller method, jump to the view file being returned.
• Jump to Route (laravel-wayfinder.jumpToRoute): From a controller method, jump back to the route definition.
• Jump to Directive (laravel-wayfinder.jumpToDirective): From Blade directives like @include, @component, or @extends, jump to the referenced view file.
• Jump to Controller from View (laravel-wayfinder.jumpToControllerFromView): From a view file, jump to the controller method that renders it.

Symbol Search Integration

• Document Symbols: Provides symbols for routes in route files, allowing quick navigation via VS Code's symbol outline.
• Workspace Symbols: Search across routes, controllers, and views using VS Code's symbol search (Ctrl+Shift+O or Cmd+Shift+O).
• Auto-completion: Intelligent completion for view names when typing return view(' in PHP files.

Advanced Features

• Bidirectional Navigation: Seamlessly move between related Laravel components (routes ↔ controllers ↔ views).
• Caching: Built-in caching for route and view indexes to improve performance on large projects.
• Customizable Paths: Support for non-standard Laravel directory structures.
• Multi-version Support: Compatible with various Laravel versions (6.x, 7.x, 8.x, 9.x, 10.x, 11.x).

Installation

1. Open VS Code
2. Go to Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X or Cmd+Shift+X)
3. Search for "Laravel Wayfinder"
4. Click Install
5. Reload VS Code if prompted

Alternatively, you can install via the command line:

code --install-extension laravel-wayfinder

Setup for Laravel Projects

Laravel Wayfinder works out-of-the-box with standard Laravel projects. For custom setups, you may need to adjust configuration settings.

Requirements

• VS Code 1.74.0 or higher
• A Laravel project (version 6.x or later recommended)

Automatic Detection

The extension automatically detects Laravel projects by looking for:

• routes/ directory
• app/Http/Controllers/ directory
• resources/views/ directory
• composer.json with Laravel dependency

Initial Setup

1. Open your Laravel project in VS Code
2. The extension will activate automatically when you open PHP files
3. Start using navigation commands via keybindings or command palette

Usage

Basic Navigation

Jumping from Route to Controller

1. Open a route file (e.g., routes/web.php)
2. Place cursor on a route definition line:

   Route::get('/users', [UserController::class, 'index']);
   

3. Use Ctrl+Shift+J (or right-click → "Jump to Controller") to jump to UserController@index

Jumping from Controller to View

1. Open a controller file (e.g., app/Http/Controllers/UserController.php)
2. Place cursor inside a method that returns a view:

   public function index()
   {
       return view('users.index');
   }
   

3. Use Alt+Shift+V (or right-click → "Jump to View") to open resources/views/users/index.blade.php

Jumping from View to Controller

1. Open a view file (e.g., resources/views/users/index.blade.php)
2. Use Alt+Shift+C (or right-click → "Jump to Controller from View")
3. If multiple controllers render this view, select from the quick pick menu

Advanced Navigation

Bidirectional Navigation Tutorial

Laravel Wayfinder enables true bidirectional navigation between Laravel components:

1. Route → Controller → View → Controller → Route

   Start in routes/web.php:

   Route::get('/dashboard', [DashboardController::class, 'index']);
   

   • Jump to Controller: Opens DashboardController.php at index method
   • Jump to View: Opens resources/views/dashboard.blade.php
   • Jump to Controller from View: Returns to DashboardController@index
   • Jump to Route: Returns to the route definition

2. Blade Directive Navigation

   In a Blade file:

   @extends('layouts.app')
   @include('partials.header')
   @component('components.alert')
   

   Place cursor on any directive line and use Alt+Shift+D to jump to the referenced file.

Symbol Search Integration Tutorial

Leverage VS Code's built-in symbol search for powerful Laravel navigation:

1. Searching Routes: Press Ctrl+Shift+O and type route URIs or HTTP methods (e.g., "GET /users")
2. Finding Controllers: Search for controller names or method names (e.g., "UserController index")
3. Locating Views: Search for view names (e.g., "dashboard")

The extension indexes all routes, controllers, and views for fast, fuzzy-matched searching.

Keybindings

All commands are also available in the right-click context menu when editing relevant files.

Configuration

Laravel Wayfinder is highly configurable to support various Laravel project structures. Access settings via File → Preferences → Settings → Extensions → Laravel Wayfinder.

Path Configuration

{
	"laravelWayfinder.viewRoot": "resources/views",
	"laravelWayfinder.routesPath": "routes",
	"laravelWayfinder.controllersPath": "app/Http/Controllers",
	"laravelWayfinder.modelsPath": "app/Models",
	"laravelWayfinder.middlewarePath": "app/Http/Middleware"
}

Feature Toggles

{
	"laravelWayfinder.enableSymbolProviders": true,
	"laravelWayfinder.enableCompletions": true,
	"laravelWayfinder.enableDiagnostics": false
}

Performance Settings

{
	"laravelWayfinder.cacheEnabled": true,
	"laravelWayfinder.maxSearchResults": 100,
	"laravelWayfinder.logLevel": "info"
}

Laravel Version Support

Set the Laravel version for optimal compatibility:

{
	"laravelWayfinder.laravelVersion": "10.x"
}

Supported versions: 6.x, 7.x, 8.x, 9.x, 10.x, 11.x

Custom Directories and Extensions

For projects with custom structures:

{
	"laravelWayfinder.customNamespaces": ["App\\Custom", "Vendor\\Package"],
	"laravelWayfinder.additionalViewDirectories": ["resources/views-custom"],
	"laravelWayfinder.customFileExtensions": [".php", ".blade.php", ".twig.php"],
	"laravelWayfinder.ignorePatterns": ["vendor/**", "node_modules/**", "storage/**"]
}

Project-Specific Settings

Override global settings for specific projects:

{
	"laravelWayfinder.projectSpecificSettings": {
		"my-project": {
			"viewRoot": "views",
			"controllersPath": "src/Controllers"
		}
	}
}

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Navigation Commands Not Working

1. Check File Types: Ensure you're in the correct file type (PHP for controllers/routes, .blade.php for views)
2. Verify Paths: Confirm your Laravel directory structure matches the configured paths
3. Reload VS Code: Sometimes a reload (Ctrl+Shift+P → "Developer: Reload Window") fixes activation issues
4. Check Logs: Set laravelWayfinder.logLevel to "debug" and check the "Laravel Wayfinder" output channel

Views Not Found

• Ensure view files end with .blade.php
• Check laravelWayfinder.viewRoot setting
• For components, ensure they're in resources/views/components/

Routes Not Parsing

• Verify route syntax matches supported patterns
• Check for custom route service providers
• Ensure route files are in the configured routesPath

Performance Issues

• Enable caching: "laravelWayfinder.cacheEnabled": true
• Increase maxSearchResults if needed
• Add ignore patterns for large directories

Extension Not Activating

• Confirm VS Code version >= 1.74.0
• Check if the project has Laravel files
• Try reinstalling the extension

Debug Mode

Enable detailed logging:

{
	"laravelWayfinder.logLevel": "debug"
}

View logs in VS Code's Output panel: View → Output → Laravel Wayfinder

Reset Configuration

To reset to defaults, remove Laravel Wayfinder settings from your settings.json or use:

{
	"laravelWayfinder": {}
}

Laravel Version Compatibility

Laravel Wayfinder supports multiple Laravel versions with optimized parsing and features:

• Laravel 6.x - 7.x: Basic route parsing, standard directory structure
• Laravel 8.x: Enhanced with attribute-based routing support
• Laravel 9.x - 11.x: Full support including new features and syntax

Set your Laravel version in settings for best compatibility:

{
	"laravelWayfinder.laravelVersion": "10.x"
}

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Add tests if applicable
5. Submit a pull request

Development Setup

git clone https://github.com/your-repo/laravel-wayfinder.git
cd laravel-wayfinder
npm install
npm run compile

Press F5 to launch extension development host.

License

This extension is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE file for details.

Release Notes

0.0.1

• Initial release
• Basic navigation between routes, controllers, and views
• Symbol search integration
• Auto-completion for view names
• Configurable paths and settings

For more information or to report issues, visit the GitHub repository.

laravel-wayfinder