Laravel + MS SQL Docker Setup

FOR DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENTS ONLY

This repository provides a Docker setup for developing Laravel applications that require PHP/MS SQL drivers to access a Microsoft SQL Server instance. Please note, this configuration is intended strictly for development purposes and should not be used in production environments.

Overview

This setup allows you to quickly spin up a development environment for Laravel applications with MS SQL Server and PHP 8.3 support. It builds upon a Laravel Sail-based project and includes additional containers to support services such as Redis, Mailpit, and MS SQL Server 2022.

Prerequisites

• A Laravel application (Sail-based).
• Docker and Docker Compose installed on your development machine.

Quick Setup

1. Add Docker Files
   Copy the Docker-related files from this repository into the root of your Laravel project.

2. Optional Configuration Changes
   Before building the Docker image, you may modify the environment variables, such as setting a custom timezone. For example:

   ENV TZ=America/Sao_Paulo

   You can also customize the docker-compose.yml file to update, add, or remove service containers according to your needs.

3. Build the Docker Image and Start the Containers
   In you first 'sail up', ensure to build the image, so run the following command:

   ./vendor/bin/sail up --build

Default Containers

The default setup includes the following services:

• Ubuntu 24.04 (Base environment from the official Laravel Sail Dockerfile)
• Redis (For caching)
• Mailpit (For email testing)
• MS SQL Server 2022 (Database)

Note: The application is served via the php artisan serve command, which is not suitable for production environments. The setup mirrors Laravel Sail’s original configuration, which is tailored for development.

Customization

Feel free to modify the docker-compose.yml file to suit your development needs. You can add or remove services, change configurations, or integrate additional tools.

Example: Adding a MySQL Service

If you wish to add MySQL alongside MS SQL Server, you can update the docker-compose.yml to include a MySQL container:

services:
  mysql:
    image: mysql:8.0
    ports:
      - "3306:3306"
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: root
      MYSQL_DATABASE: laravel
      MYSQL_USER: user
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: password

Important Notes

• This setup is intended for local development only. Do not use it in production.
• The Ubuntu container is configured for development and serves the Laravel application using the php artisan serve command, which is not performant or secure for production environments.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues while building or starting the containers, here are a few tips:

• Ensure Docker is running and that your Docker Compose file is properly configured.
• Check for any port conflicts with other services running on your machine (such as MS SQL or Redis).
• Use docker-compose logs to view logs for individual containers.

You might encounter an issue with the self-signed DB server certificate. Since this is intended only for development, you might just add the following in your config/database.php 'sqlsrv' entry:

 'trust_server_certificate' => env('DB_TRUST_SERVER_CERTIFICATE', 'true'),

So the 'sqlsrv' entry would be like:

        'sqlsrv' => [
            'driver' => 'sqlsrv',
            'url' => env('DB_URL'),
            'host' => env('DB_HOST', 'localhost'),
            'port' => env('DB_PORT', '1433'),
            'database' => env('DB_DATABASE', 'laravel'),
            'username' => env('DB_USERNAME', 'root'),
            'password' => env('DB_PASSWORD', ''),
            'charset' => env('DB_CHARSET', 'utf8'),
            'prefix' => '',
            'prefix_indexes' => true,
            // 'encrypt' => env('DB_ENCRYPT', 'yes'),
            'trust_server_certificate' => env('DB_TRUST_SERVER_CERTIFICATE', 'true'),
        ],

Conclusion

This Docker setup provides a convenient way to develop Laravel applications that require MS SQL Server support. With minimal configuration, you can spin up a fully functional development environment tailored to your needs.

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