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What is CakePHP? Why Use it?

by Pranisha Rai
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Introduction

CakePHP helps PHP developers create web applications quickly without having to start from scratch. Whether you’re building small, large, or medium-sized websites, the CakePHP framework is an excellent choice to build the site’s backend. Around 40,000 live websites are built using CakePHP. This article will explore what CakePHP is and why use it.

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What Is CakePHP?

CakePHP was inspired by Ruby on Rails but written in PHP. It is a versatile open-source PHP framework that makes deploying, developing, and maintaining applications easy. PHP developers use the CakePHP framework to build scalable web applications with search engine-friendly URLs. CakePHP has 8.7K stars and 3.5 forks on Github.

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Advantages Of CakePHP

  • It offers a pre-built template that accelerates the web development process. 
  • It’s super easy to manage, and even those with less experience won’t encounter difficulty while working with it. 
  • It is extremely beneficial for building large and complex applications. 
  • Automatic configuration and easy setting up of the site location saves a lot of time and efforts for developers. 
  • Custom testing makes the testing task incredibly fast and straightforward for developers. 
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Disadvantages Of CakePHP

  • While working with large and complex projects, CakePHP runs slower than other frameworks. 
  • CakePHP’s complex conventions and customizable features make learning steeper. 
  • There is a restriction on flexibility due to its modifications in guidelines. Thus, for any modifications that go beyond the given guidelines, developers need to put in additional work. 
  • Its default routes need to be updated to build the URL.
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Why Is CakePHP Widely Used ?

CakephP uses

CakePHP not only provides convenience but also removes monotony involved in web development. It offers many tools and features that are crucial for modern-day web development. The following are the reasons for the wide usage of PHP: 

  • Follows MVC Architecture: This architecture breaks down the application into three parts, i.e., model, view, and controller. Due to this, handling a large application is incredibly simple, especially for applications with tons of features. Most of the time, when the application grows large, managing it is quite challenging. Also, things tend to be cumbersome and messy. However, CakePHP frameworks run under the MVC architecture, so developers don’t have to deal with this confusing part. Developers can manage one task at a time in an organized way.
  • Class inheritance: Developers usually get intimidated by the term inheritance while developing web applications. Luckily, with CakePHP, that isn’t the case! Instead of being intimidating, inheritance is simpler and easier to comprehend. The framework provides an app controller and an app model through which modification of anything is possible without any hassle.
  • Seamless Extension of Project: Developers can effortlessly extend their project’s components, plugins, and behavior. They can also create a reusable library instead of extending the core libraries of CakePHP. By doing so, it can easily be shared across the application with streamlined efforts. In addition, many well-defined conventions for CakePHP can simplify the development task and promote a faster time to market.
  • Built-in Object Relational Mapping Support: ORM level of abstraction and smooth interaction between code and database allow application flexibility. ORM is adaptable to work with different kinds of data sources and relational databases. CakePHP treats its database table as class code. The built-in ORM of CakePHP helps to bridge the gap between data in the database and code. As a result, managing and maintaining code in CakePHP is straightforward.
  • Robust Security: CakePHP frameworks have plenty of built-in tools that are enough to keep cyber threats at bay. Thus, apps built using the CakePHP framework are highly secure and protected. To breach its firewall is almost impossible; some of the tools that protect websites from threats are CSRF protection and SQL injection prevention.
  • CRUD Scaffolding: Using this feature, developers can perform basic operations such as create, read, update, and delete. It also provides tools like bake.php, which is extremely beneficial for modifying things according to the application requirements. Therefore, CRUD scaffolding boosts productivity and provides a high level of customization.
  • Ease of Configuration: This is why most PHP developers choose CakePHP as their web framework for application development. There is no hardcore task for managing the database through CakePHP; there are only a few database connection settings, and you can rest assured. There is no need for manual work to specify the file path, as the CakePHP framework’s automated process contributes to the ease of configuring the task.
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When Should You Consider CakePHP?

  • If you have budget constraints, then CakePHP is the ideal option to create an application with fewer resources. 
  • Its simplicity makes it well-suited for small to large-sized applications. 
  • If you want to develop an application quickly while dealing with fewer configurations, Using CakePHP, you can greatly benefit from it.
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Application Built Using CakePHP

So far, we explored its advantages and disadvantages and what is it used for now we will see some of the top applications built using CakePHP: 

  • Express Yourself: It is an online charitable fundraising platform that uses CakePHP for its seamless integration and flexibility.
  • Snappy TV: A video-sharing platform that uses CakePHP for handling backend operations and providing responsive service to its customers. 
  • Metro Bank: It is the UK online banking platform that relies on CakePHP to perform various transactions securely. 
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In Conclusion

CakePHP is a highly flexible PHP framework with an incredible built-in ORM, using which building queries is pretty simple. Its robust plugins and tools promote code reusability in the application. It has a mature community that can provide better support for its peers. Besides, it gives developers the flexibility to alter the structure of the URL in one place rather than searching for each change. Therefore, using the CakePHP framework can save a lot of time and effort. In terms of company usage, CakePHP is widely used in the retail industry in the United States. Likewise, companies and universities such as SOFITEC, Panasonic Corp., Brisbane Broncos, Arts School of Chicago, and Standford University use CakePHP. If you wish to build a website with a high level of security, hiring a CakePHP developer is the wise thing to do. So, sign up with Olibr now!

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FAQs

Laravel’s two-way binding can make routing complex, whereas CakePHP offers simple routing. Lavravel can handle data and backup with a decent method, but CakePHP is not ideal for this task.

Yes, its adaptable architectural pattern allows the creation of applications of various sizes and domains.

Yes, they are. Even though the features of these frameworks overlap with each other, Laravel is considered more modern with advanced tools.

The most useful features are dynamic scaffolding and automatic code generation using the console tool, Bake.

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