How do I handle file uploads in a Laravel CRUD application

Setting up the Database Migration

1. Create a migration for the table that will store the file uploads:

bash
php artisan make:migration create_posts_table --create=posts

2. In the migration file, add a column for the file path:

php
$table->string('image');

Creating the Model and Controller

3. Generate a model and controller with resource methods:

bash
php artisan make:model Post -mc --resource

4. In the controller's `store` method, handle the file upload:

php
public function store(Request $request)
{
    $request->validate([
        'title' => 'required',
        'image' => 'required|image|max:2048',
    ]);

    $imageName = time() . '.' . $request->image->extension();
    $request->image->move(public_path('images'), $imageName);

    $post = Post::create([
        'title' => $request->title,
        'image' => $imageName,
    ]);

    return redirect()->route('posts.index')
        ->with('success', 'Post created successfully.');
}

5. In the controller's `update` method, handle file updates:

php
public function update(Request $request, Post $post)
{
    $request->validate([
        'title' => 'required',
        'image' => 'image|max:2048',
    ]);

    if ($request->hasFile('image')) {
        $imageName = time() . '.' . $request->image->extension();
        $request->image->move(public_path('images'), $imageName);
        $post->image = $imageName;
    }

    $post->title = $request->title;
    $post->save();

    return redirect()->route('posts.index')
        ->with('success', 'Post updated successfully');
}

Creating the Views

6. Create the necessary views (e.g., `index.blade.php`, `create.blade.php`, `edit.blade.php`) and include file input fields:

html
<form action="{{ route('posts.store') }}" method="POST" enctype="multipart/form-data">
    @csrf
    <div class="form-group">
        <label for="title">Title</label>
        <input type="text" class="form-control" id="title" name="title" required>
    </div>
    <div class="form-group">
        <label for="image">Image</label>
        <input type="file" class="form-control-file" id="image" name="image" required>
    </div>
    <button type="submit" class="btn btn-primary">Submit</button>
</form>

7. In the `index.blade.php` view, display the uploaded images:

html
@foreach ($posts as $post)
    <div class="card" style="width: 18rem;">
        <img src="{{ asset('images/' . $post->image) }}" class="card-img-top" alt="{{ $post->title }}">
        <div class="card-body">
            <h5 class="card-title">{{ $post->title }}</h5>
            <a href="{{ route('posts.edit', $post->id) }}" class="btn btn-primary">Edit</a>
        </div>
    </div>
@endforeach

By following these steps, you can successfully handle file uploads in your Laravel CRUD application. Remember to configure the appropriate file storage settings in your application's configuration files.