This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Jorge Peraza
🚀 Ship Production-Ready PHP in Record Time with MonkeysLegion
If you’re a PHP developer or part of a modern web-team shipping APIs, micro-services or full-blown back-ends, you’re likely well aware of the friction that comes from boilerplate setup, configuration chaos, and the endless round of “which router, which DI container, what dev-ops infra” decisions.
That’s exactly the problem we set out to solve with MonkeysLegion — a lightweight, modular PHP framework built to streamline your workflow from commit → cloud in minutes, not days.
🧠 Why MonkeysLegion?
🔧 Minimal setup, maximum output
From day one, MonkeysLegion gives you a blazing-fast router, a rock-solid dependency-injection container, a first-class CLI tool, and a zero-config Docker stack that’s ready for testing, observability and scaling.
“Cut setup from days to minutes — MonkeysLegion bundles everything wired for testing, observability, and scale on day one.”
— monkeyslegion.com
👥 Built for modern teams
MonkeysLegion isn’t just for solo hacks — it’s meant for agencies, shops, and internal dev teams who want consistency, speed and sanity.
✅ Clear structure so new joiners can hit the ground running
✅ Environment setup handled (via Docker) — less “works on my machine” drama
✅ Router + DI + CLI combo that plays nicely with tests, observability, and deployment pipelines
🧩 Feature-rich without being heavy
Out of the box:
- Fast router (lean and expressive)
- DI Container (clean, maintainable dependencies)
- CLI for migrations, tasks, and seeding
- Zero-config Docker stack (dev/test/prod parity)
Use it standalone or extend it with your favorite libraries — MonkeysLegion plays nice with everything.
⚙️ Getting Started
composer create-project "monkeyscloud/monkeyslegion-skeleton"
That’s it.
You’ll get a running skeleton pre-wired for routing, DI, and CLI.
Then:
- Spin up the Docker environment
- Define routes/controllers
- Register your services in the DI container
- Write your first test
- Deploy using the same stack into production
Docs: https://monkeyslegion.com
💡 Example: Defining a Simple API Endpoint
// routes/api.php
$app->get('/users/{id}', function ($request, $response, array $args) {
$userId = (int) $args['id'];
/** @var \App\Service\UserService $userService */
$userService = $this->get(UserService::class);
$user = $userService->findUser($userId);
return $response->withJson($user);
});
And the corresponding service might live in
src/Service/UserService.php under the DI container, keeping your architecture clean and testable.
🔍 Why This Approach Matters
🚀 Faster time to value
No more setup debates. Prototype, iterate, and deploy faster.
🧱 Consistency & maintainability
Clean structure → faster onboarding → easier reviews → predictable builds.
☁️ DevOps ready
A zero-config Docker stack ensures dev/test/production parity and smooth CI/CD integration.
🌱 Growing ecosystem
New components, CLI modules, and guides are published regularly on
➡️ monkeyslegion.com/blog
🧭 When Should You Use MonkeysLegion?
✅ When starting a new backend/API in PHP
✅ When your team needs an opinionated but flexible stack
✅ When you want built-in Docker support
✅ When you want to focus on features, not plumbing
Maybe skip it if:
- You’re locked into another heavy framework (Laravel/Symfony)
- You rely on very legacy PHP extensions not yet supported
🪄 Next Steps
- Visit monkeyslegion.com
- Explore the documentation & examples
- Clone the skeleton and build a CRUD API
- Join the community and share feedback
💬 In Summary
MonkeysLegion is more than another PHP framework — it’s a productivity-first ecosystem for modern teams.
If you’re ready to skip the boilerplate and focus on what actually matters, give it a try.
composer create-project "monkeyscloud/monkeyslegion-skeleton"
Happy shipping 🚀
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Jorge Peraza
Jorge Peraza | Sciencx (2025-10-24T01:32:12+00:00) Ship Production-Ready PHP in Record Time with MonkeysLegion. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/10/24/ship-production-ready-php-in-record-time-with-monkeyslegion/
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