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Install CorianderPHP

Start from a framework release when you want a normal CorianderPHP project. Do not use the documentation website repository as your application, and do not copy documentation-only files into a new app.

Download A Release

Open the CorianderPHP framework releases page and download the version you want to build with:

Use the latest stable release for a normal project. Use a prerelease only when you intentionally want to test the newest framework changes.

Prepare The Project Folder

Extract the release archive into your project folder. A release archive is the easiest path because it is meant to become an application.

If you use the GitHub source tree instead of a release archive, remove repository-only files before treating the folder as your app. These files are useful for maintaining the framework repository, but they are not needed to run a normal application.

You normally do not need:

.github/
docs/
AGENTS.md
readme.md

Remove only files you recognize as repository maintenance material. Keep required license notices when redistributing framework code; runtime requirements and license obligations are different things.

Install PHP Dependencies

Install Composer dependencies from the project root:

composer install

This installs the PHP packages needed by the framework and creates the Composer autoloader.

Install Frontend Dependencies

Install NodeJS dependencies through the framework command:

php coriander nodejs run install

This runs the NodeJS install command from the nodejs folder without making you manually move into that directory.

Configure Environment

Copy the example environment file:

cp .env-example .env

On Windows PowerShell:

Copy-Item .env-example .env

Update .env for your local URL, database, and public URL prefix.

The 0.4.1 starter defaults to production with debug disabled. On a trusted local machine, explicitly use:

APP_ENV=local
APP_DEBUG=1
PROJECT_URL=http://localhost:8080

Use APP_ENV=production and APP_DEBUG=0 on a public server. Existing environment files are not rewritten by framework updates.

If your server exposes the project root, keep:

PUBLIC_URL_PREFIX=/public

If your server document root is already the public/ folder, use:

PUBLIC_URL_PREFIX=

Build Frontend Assets

For production assets, run:

php coriander nodejs run build-prod

During development, use the NodeJS command documented in NodeJS Integration.

To try the app locally with the public directory as document root:

php -S localhost:8080 -t public public/index.php

Use PUBLIC_URL_PREFIX= for this command. The PHP development server is not a production server.

Next Steps

The 0.4.1 starter discovers method files under src/Views. index.get.php defines the homepage. A direct .get.php page creates a URL; an unsuffixed template does not. Follow Static View Guide for a fixed page or Dynamic View Guide for prepared data.

After installation, create your first route and view: