Introduction

Laravel Sanctum is a powerful package that simplifies API authentication in Laravel applications. Whether you're building a mobile app or providing API access to your web application, Sanctum can help secure your endpoints. In this guide, we will explore the basics of using Laravel Sanctum for API authentication.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• An existing Laravel project
• Basic knowledge of Laravel and API development
• Composer installed

Step 1: Install Laravel Sanctum

Start by installing Laravel Sanctum using Composer:

            
composer require laravel/sanctum
            
        

Then, publish the Sanctum configuration and migration files:

            
php artisan vendor:publish --tag=sanctum-config
php artisan vendor:publish --tag=sanctum-migrations
            
        

And run the migration to create the necessary database tables:

            
php artisan migrate
            
        

Step 2: Configure Sanctum

In your Laravel application, configure Sanctum in the `config/sanctum.php` file. Set the domain and paths that should be allowed to access your API:

            
'stateful' => env('SANCTUM_STATEFUL_DOMAINS', ['your-app.com']),
'stateless' => env('SANCTUM_STATELESS_DOMAINS', ['api.your-app.com']),
            
        

Step 3: Create API Routes

In your `routes/api.php` file, define the routes you want to protect with Sanctum authentication. You can use the `sanctum` middleware to secure these routes:

            
Route::middleware('auth:sanctum')->get('/user', function (Request $request) {
    return $request->user();
});
            
        

Step 4: Authenticate Users

To authenticate users, you can use Sanctum's built-in authentication methods. For example, you can create tokens for users and use them to make authenticated API requests:

            
$user = User::find(1);
$token = $user->createToken('api-token')->plainTextToken;
            
        

Conclusion

Laravel Sanctum simplifies API authentication, making it accessible for beginners and experienced developers alike. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can secure your API endpoints and build a robust API for your application.