PHP Helpers

A single-file helper collection for plain PHP 8.1+ projects that want a few Laravel-style conveniences without installing a framework.

Drop in helpers.php, require it from your bootstrap, and use the helpers you need for requests, responses, config, sessions, views, storage, caching, arrays, encryption, and small control-flow niceties.

Why This Exists

Plain PHP is still a good fit for small sites, prototypes, admin tools, webhooks, and legacy code that does not need a full framework. This file gives those projects a familiar vocabulary:

require_once __DIR__ . '/helpers.php';

config([
    'base_url' => 'https://example.com',
    'storage_path' => __DIR__ . '/../storage',
]);

dispatch();

No Composer package is required. No service container is required. The helpers are guarded with function_exists() so they can live alongside other code.

Requirements

• PHP 8.1 or newer
• OpenSSL for encrypt() / decrypt()
• Sessions enabled if you use session(), csrf_field(), old(), or auth()

Installation

Copy helpers.php into your project and require it from your bootstrap or entry point:

require_once __DIR__ . '/helpers.php';

For encryption, provide an APP_KEY of at least 32 bytes through the environment or a .env file in the document root:

APP_KEY=change-me-to-a-random-32-byte-secret

A Small App

This is the intended scale: a tiny front controller with readable handlers.

<?php

require_once __DIR__ . '/helpers.php';

config([
    'base_url' => 'https://example.com',
    'storage_path' => __DIR__ . '/../storage',
]);

function getIndex(): void
{
    view('home', [
        'title' => 'Dashboard',
        'user' => auth(),
    ]);
}

function postProfile(): void
{
    if (request('_token') !== session('_token')) {
        abort(403, 'CSRF token mismatch');
    }

    $name = trim((string) request('name'));

    logger('info', 'Profile updated', ['name' => $name]);

    session(['_old_input' => []]);
    redirect('/profile');
}

dispatch();

And a matching view:

<!-- views/home.php -->
<h1><?= e($title) ?></h1>

<form method="POST" action="/profile">
    <?= csrf_field() ?>
    <input name="name" value="<?= e(old('name', $user['name'] ?? '')) ?>">
    <button type="submit">Save</button>
</form>

Recipes

Request Data

$name = request('name', 'Guest');
$firstItem = request('items.0');

$data = request(['name', 'email']);
// ['name' => ..., 'email' => ...]

$all = request();

request() reads from $_REQUEST and supports dot notation through data_get().

Responses

response('Created', 201);

json_response([
    'ok' => true,
    'id' => 123,
]);

redirect('/login');

abort(404, 'Not found');

Configuration And Environment

// config.php in the document root may return an array.
$timezone = config('app.timezone', 'UTC');

config([
    'app.debug' => true,
    'cache_path' => storage('cache'),
]);

$debug = env('APP_DEBUG', false);
$host = server('HTTP_HOST', 'localhost');

Arrays And Dot Notation

$user = [
    'name' => 'Ada',
    'profile' => ['email' => 'ada@example.com'],
    'password' => 'secret',
];

$email = data_get($user, 'profile.email');
$public = array_except($user, 'password');
$only = array_only($user, ['name', 'profile']);

data_set($user, 'profile.timezone', 'UTC');

Sessions And Forms

session([
    'user' => ['id' => 7, 'name' => 'Ada'],
    '_old_input' => request(),
]);

$user = auth();
$previousEmail = old('email');

<form method="POST" action="/users/7">
    <?= csrf_field() ?>
    <?= method_field('PATCH') ?>
    <input name="email" value="<?= e(old('email')) ?>">
    <button type="submit">Update</button>
</form>

Views, Storage, And Logs

view('reports/show', [
    'report' => $report,
]);

$path = storage('reports/today.json');
file_put_contents($path, json_encode($report));

logger('info', 'Report written', ['path' => $path]);
echo lastline(storage('logs/' . date('Y-m-d') . '.log'));

view() resolves files inside DOCUMENT_ROOT/views and exposes both extracted variables and $viewData.

Cache

$products = cache('products');

if ($products === null) {
    $products = fetchProducts();
    cache('products', $products, 1800);
}

The file cache stores JSON payloads under config('cache_path') or storage('cache').

URLs, Assets, And Routes

echo url('search', ['q' => 'php helpers']);
echo asset('css/app.css');

$GLOBALS['routes'] = [
    'home' => '/',
    'user.show' => '/users/{id}',
];

echo route('user.show', ['id' => 7]);

Encryption

$token = encrypt(['user_id' => 7, 'scope' => 'invite']);
$payload = decrypt($token);

Encrypted values are authenticated with an HMAC. Tampered payloads throw an exception during decryption.

Utility Flow

$settings = once('settings', function () {
    return config('settings', []);
});

$profile = retry(3, function (int $attempt) {
    return fetchProfileFromApi();
}, 250);

$user = tap(auth(), function ($user) {
    logger('info', 'User loaded', ['id' => $user['id'] ?? null]);
});

$fallback = value(function () {
    return 'computed only when needed';
});

Helper Reference

Request & Response

Helper	Purpose
request($key = null, $default = null)	Read request data, including dot-notated keys.
response($content = '', $status = 200, array $headers = [])	Send an HTTP response body, status, and headers.
json_response($data, $status = 200, array $headers = [])	Send a JSON response.
redirect(string $url, int $status = 302)	Send a redirect response and exit.
abort(int $code, string $message = '')	Send an error status, escaped message, and exit.
dispatch()	Route the current request to functions like getIndex() or postUser().

Debugging & Logging

Helper	Purpose
dd(...$data)	Dump values and stop execution.
dump(...$data)	Dump values and continue execution.
info(string $message, array $context = [])	Log an info-level message.
logger(string $level, string $message, array $context = [])	Append a log entry under configured log storage.
lastline(string $filePath)	Return the last line from a file.

Arrays

Helper	Purpose
`array_only(array $array, array	string $keys)`
`array_except(array $array, array	string $keys)`
`array_pluck(array $array, array	string $value, array
`data_get($target, array	string $key, $default = null)`
`data_set(&$target, array	string $key, $value, bool $overwrite = true)`

Session & Security

Helper	Purpose
session($key = null, $default = null)	Start and read/write the PHP session.
auth()	Return session('user').
old(string $key, $default = null)	Read _old_input values from the session.
csrf_field()	Generate a hidden _token input and session token.
method_field(string $method)	Generate a hidden _method input.
e(?string $value)	Escape HTML output.
encrypt($value, bool $serialize = true)	Encrypt and authenticate a value.
decrypt(string $payload, bool $unserialize = true)	Decrypt and verify an encrypted payload.

Configuration, Paths, And URLs

Helper	Purpose
env(string $key, $default = null)	Read .env, $_ENV, or process environment values.
config($key = null, $default = null)	Read or set cached configuration values.
server(string $key, $default = null)	Read $_SERVER with a default.
storage(string $path = '')	Build a path under configured storage.
view(string $view, array $data = [], array $mergeData = [])	Render a PHP view from the views directory.
url(?string $path = null, array $parameters = [], ?bool $secure = null)	Build an absolute URL from the current request host.
asset(string $path)	Build an asset URL using base_url config when available.
route(string $name, array $parameters = [])	Fill placeholders in $GLOBALS['routes'].
cache($key = null, $value = null, ?int $seconds = null)	Read or write JSON file cache entries.

Utilities

Helper	Purpose
value($value)	Return a value, resolving closures lazily.
once(string $key, callable $callback)	Run a callback once per key for the current request.
retry(int $times, callable $callback, int $sleepMilliseconds = 0)	Retry a throwing callback before rethrowing the final exception.
tap($value, callable $callback)	Run a side effect and return the original value.

Notes

• This library intentionally keeps behavior small and explicit.
• It is useful for lightweight apps, scripts, prototypes, and legacy projects that want a familiar helper layer.
• It is not a replacement for a framework router, validator, ORM, queue, or dependency injection container.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.