Using Forms to Accept User Input and Store it into the Database

Tags: Laravel, programming, forms, database

This tutorial is part of the Laravel Handbook. Download it from here.

In this tutorial, we will learn how to create a form that accepts user input and stores it into the database using Laravel.

To begin, we need to create a Dog model. A model allows us to interact with data stored in the database. Each model represents a specific table in the database and provides methods to perform database actions such as create, read, update, and delete records.

To create the Dog model, open the terminal and run the following command:

php artisan make:model Dog

This command will generate a Dog.php file in the app/Models directory. The model is based on the Eloquent ORM (object-relational mapper), which allows us to interact with the database using PHP classes.

Next, open the Dog.php file and add the name field to the $fillable array. This will allow us to mass assign the name field when creating a new dog record:

<?php

namespace App\Models;

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Factories\HasFactory;
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;

class Dog extends Model
{
    use HasFactory;

    protected $fillable = ['name'];
}

Now that we have the model set up, let’s create a form to add a new dog to the database.

First, open the routes/web.php file and add the following routes:

use App\Http\Controllers\DogController;

//...

Route::get('/newdog', function () {
    return view('newdog');
});

Route::post('/dogs', [DogController::class, 'create'])->name('dog.create');

Route::get('/dogs', function () {
    $dogs = Dog::all();
    return view('dogs', ['dogs' => $dogs]);
})->name('dogs');

In the above code, we have defined two routes: /newdog and /dogs. The /newdog route renders a view called newdog.blade.php, which contains the form. The /dogs route renders a view called dogs.blade.php, which displays the dogs stored in the database.

Next, run the following command to generate a DogController:

php artisan make:controller DogController

This will create a DogController.php file in the app/Http/Controllers directory. A controller is responsible for handling actions and performing actions based on the request.

Open the DogController.php file and add the following code:

<?php

namespace App\Http\Controllers;

use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use App\Models\Dog;

class DogController extends Controller
{
    public function create(Request $request)
    {
        $this->validate($request, [
            'name' => 'required',
        ]);

        Dog::create($request->all());

        return redirect()->route('dogs');
    }
}

In the above code, the create method handles the data submitted from the form. It validates the input and then creates a new Dog record using the create method of the Dog model. Finally, it redirects the user to the /dogs route.

Now, let’s create the newdog.blade.php file in the resources/views directory. This file will contain the form to add a new dog record:

<form method="post" action="{{ route('dog.create') }}">
    @csrf
    <label>Name</label>
    <input type="text" name="name" id="name">
    <input type="submit" name="send" value="Submit">
</form>

To view the form, run php artisan serve and go to http://127.0.0.1:8000/newdog.

Once you submit the form, the data will be stored in the database and you will be redirected to the /dogs route, which displays the dogs stored in the database.

To display the dogs in the dogs.blade.php file, add the following code:

@foreach ($dogs as $dog)
    {{ $dog->name }}
@endforeach

Now, when you visit http://127.0.0.1:8000/dogs, you will see a list of dogs displayed on the page.

And that’s it! You have successfully created a form that accepts user input and stores it into the database using Laravel. Feel free to explore more about forms and database interactions in Laravel’s documentation.