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Prerequisites

Before installing Heimerdinger.lol, ensure your system meets these requirements:

PHP 8.2+

Laravel 11 requires PHP version 8.2 or higher with required extensions

Composer

Dependency manager for PHP packages

Node.js & npm

Required for building frontend assets with Vite

MySQL 8.0+

Relational database for storing application data
For a complete list of Laravel server requirements, visit the Laravel Documentation.

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Required PHP Extensions

Ensure the following PHP extensions are installed and enabled:
  • OpenSSL
  • PDO
  • Mbstring
  • Tokenizer
  • XML
  • Ctype
  • JSON
  • BCMath
  • Fileinfo
  • GD or Imagick (for image processing)

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Installation Steps

1

Clone the Repository

Clone the Heimerdinger.lol repository to your local machine:
git clone https://github.com/rico-vz/HeimerdingerLoL.git
cd HeimerdingerLoL
This downloads the complete source code including all Laravel application files, migrations, and frontend assets.
2

Install PHP Dependencies

Use Composer to install all required PHP packages:
composer install
This installs all dependencies defined in composer.json:10-33, including:
  • Laravel Framework 11.x
  • Laravel Octane for performance
  • Laravel Pulse for monitoring
  • Spatie packages for backup, sitemap, and query building
  • Image processing libraries
  • And more…
The installation may take several minutes depending on your internet connection.
3

Install Node Dependencies

Install frontend dependencies using npm:
npm install
This installs packages from package.json:12-28, including:
  • Vite for asset bundling
  • TailwindCSS for styling
  • Flowbite for UI components
  • Axios for HTTP requests
4

Environment Configuration

Copy the example environment file and generate an application key:
cp .env.example .env
php artisan key:generate
The key:generate command creates a secure encryption key stored in your .env file. This key is used for encrypting session data and other sensitive information.
Never commit your .env file to version control. It contains sensitive credentials.
5

Configure Environment Variables

Open the .env file and configure essential variables:
.env
APP_NAME=Heimerdinger
APP_ENV=local
APP_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8000
APP_TIMEZONE=Europe/Amsterdam

DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=heimerdinger_db
DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=your_password

RGAPI_KEY="RGAPI-your-riot-api-key"
See the Configuration Guide for detailed information about all environment variables.
6

Create Database

Create a MySQL database for the application:
mysql -u root -p
Then in the MySQL prompt:
CREATE DATABASE heimerdinger_db CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
EXIT;
The database name should match the DB_DATABASE value in your .env file (.env.example:51).
7

Run Database Migrations

Execute migrations to create all required database tables:
php artisan migrate
This creates tables for:
  • champions - Champion data and statistics (database/migrations/2023_10_25_180120_create_champions_table.php:1)
  • champion_skins - Skin information and pricing (database/migrations/2023_10_26_175822_create_champion_skins_table.php:1)
  • users - User authentication (database/migrations/2014_10_12_000000_create_users_table.php:1)
  • pulse_* - Laravel Pulse monitoring tables (database/migrations/2023_06_07_000001_create_pulse_tables.php:1)
  • And other supporting tables
If you need to reset the database, use php artisan migrate:fresh (this will delete all data).
8

Build Frontend Assets

Compile CSS and JavaScript assets:
npm run dev
The development command starts the Vite dev server with hot module replacement. For production deployments, use the build command to create optimized assets.Vite compiles files from vite.config.js:8:
  • resources/css/app.css - TailwindCSS styles
  • resources/js/app.js - Main JavaScript
  • resources/js/lane-filter.js - Champion lane filtering
  • resources/js/horizontal-scroll.js - UI scroll behavior
9

Start the Development Server

Launch the Laravel development server:
php artisan serve
The application will be available at http://127.0.0.1:8000 (or the URL specified in APP_URL).
For development, run npm run dev-all (package.json:9) to start both the Laravel server and Vite dev server simultaneously.

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Post-Installation

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Verify Installation

Visit http://127.0.0.1:8000 in your browser. You should see the Heimerdinger.lol homepage.

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Seed the Database (Optional)

If you want to populate the database with test data: 
php artisan db:seed
Create a symbolic link for public storage access: 
php artisan storage:link
This creates a link from public/storage to storage/app/public, allowing uploaded files to be publicly accessible.

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Development Dependencies

For development, the following additional tools are included (composer.json:35-46):
Displays debug information in the browser including queries, routes, and performance metrics.
# Already installed with composer install
# Access at the bottom of any page in local environment
Generates helper files for better IDE autocompletion.
php artisan ide-helper:generate
php artisan ide-helper:meta
These commands run automatically after composer update (composer.json:70-71).
Code style fixer for maintaining consistent code formatting.
./vendor/bin/pint
# or
npm run laravel-pint
Automated code refactoring and PHP version upgrades.
./vendor/bin/rector process

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Production Deployment

For production environments, additional steps are recommended:
1

Optimize Configuration

Cache configuration files for better performance:
php artisan config:cache
php artisan route:cache
php artisan view:cache
2

Set Production Environment

Update your .env file:
.env
APP_ENV=production
APP_DEBUG=false
Never set APP_DEBUG=true in production as it exposes sensitive information.
3

Configure Laravel Octane

For maximum performance, use Laravel Octane with Swoole:
# Install Swoole extension
pecl install swoole

# Start Octane server
php artisan octane:start --server=swoole --host=0.0.0.0 --port=8000
Configure Octane settings in .env (env.example:25-26):
OCTANE_SERVER=swoole
OCTANE_HTTPS=false

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Troubleshooting

If you encounter permission errors, ensure the web server has write access to:
chmod -R 775 storage bootstrap/cache
chown -R www-data:www-data storage bootstrap/cache
If Composer runs out of memory:
COMPOSER_MEMORY_LIMIT=-1 composer install
Check which extensions are loaded:
php -m
Install missing extensions using your package manager (apt, yum, brew, etc.).
Verify your database credentials in .env and ensure MySQL is running:
sudo systemctl status mysql
# or
mysql -u root -p -e "SELECT 1;"

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Next Steps

Configuration Guide

Configure API keys, environment variables, and application settings

Contributing

Learn how to contribute to the project

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