Laravel Navigation

A powerful, flexible navigation management package for Laravel applications. Define multiple navigation structures with breadcrumbs, active state detection, and pre-compiled icons - perfect for React, Inertia.js, and traditional Blade applications.

Features

🗺️ Multiple Navigations - Define unlimited navigation structures (main nav, footer, sidebars, etc.)
🔗 Route-Based - Use Laravel route names with full IDE autocomplete support
🍞 Breadcrumb Generation - Automatically generate breadcrumbs from your navigation structure
🌳 Tree Export - Export navigation as nested JSON for frontend frameworks
✨ Active State Detection - Smart detection of active menu items and their parents
🎨 Pre-compiled Icons - Compile Lucide icons to SVG strings for optimal performance
🔘 Action Support - Define POST/DELETE actions (logout, form submissions, etc.)
🌐 External URLs - Mix internal routes with external links
✅ Validation - Artisan command to validate all route references
🧪 Fully Tested - Comprehensive Pest test suite

Installation

Install via Composer:

composer require sysmatter/laravel-navigation

Publish the configuration file:

php artisan vendor:publish --tag=navigation-config

Configuration

Define your navigations in config/navigation.php:

return [
    'navigations' => [
        'main' => [
            [
                'label' => 'Dashboard',
                'route' => 'dashboard',
                'icon' => 'home',
            ],
            [
                'label' => 'Users',
                'route' => 'users.index',
                'icon' => 'users',
                'can' => 'view-users',  // Only show if user has permission
                'children' => [
                    ['label' => 'All Users', 'route' => 'users.index'],
                    ['label' => 'Roles', 'route' => 'users.roles.index', 'can' => 'manage-roles'],
                    ['label' => 'Permissions', 'route' => 'users.permissions.index', 'can' => 'manage-permissions'],
                ],
            ],
            [
                'label' => 'Settings',
                'route' => 'settings.index',
                'icon' => 'settings',
                'visible' => fn() => auth()->user()?->isAdmin(),  // Dynamic visibility
            ],
        ],

        'user_menu' => [
            ['label' => 'Profile', 'route' => 'profile.edit', 'icon' => 'user'],
            ['label' => 'Settings', 'route' => 'settings.index', 'icon' => 'settings'],
            ['label' => 'Logout', 'route' => 'logout', 'method' => 'post', 'icon' => 'log-out'],
        ],

        'footer' => [
            ['label' => 'Documentation', 'url' => 'https://docs.example.com'],
            ['label' => 'Privacy Policy', 'route' => 'legal.privacy'],
            ['label' => 'Terms of Service', 'route' => 'legal.terms'],
        ],
    ],

    'icons' => [
        'compiled_path' => storage_path('navigation/icons.php'),
    ],
];

Usage

Basic Usage

Get a navigation tree for your frontend:

use SysMatter\Navigation\Facades\Navigation;

// Get navigation tree
$mainNav = Navigation::get('main')->toTree();

// Pass to Inertia
return inertia('Dashboard', [
    'navigation' => $mainNav,
]);

// Or return as JSON
return response()->json([
    'navigation' => $mainNav,
]);

With Route Parameters

For routes that require parameters:

// Route: /users/{user}/posts
$navigation = Navigation::get('sidebar')->toTree([
    'user' => $user->id,
]);

Breadcrumbs

Generate breadcrumbs from the current route:

// Auto-detect current route
$breadcrumbs = Navigation::breadcrumbs('main');

// Or specify a route
$breadcrumbs = Navigation::breadcrumbs('main', 'users.show');

// With parameters
$breadcrumbs = Navigation::breadcrumbs('main', 'users.show', [
    'user' => $user->id,
]);

Output Format

The toTree() method returns an array structure perfect for frontend consumption:

[
    [
        'id' => 'nav-main-0',
        'label' => 'Dashboard',
        'url' => 'http://localhost/dashboard',
        'isActive' => true,
        'icon' => '<svg>...</svg>',  // Compiled SVG (if icons compiled)
        'children' => [],
    ],
    [
        'id' => 'nav-main-1',
        'label' => 'Users',
        'url' => 'http://localhost/users',
        'isActive' => false,
        'icon' => '<svg>...</svg>',
        'children' => [
            [
                'id' => 'nav-main-1-0',
                'label' => 'All Users',
                'url' => 'http://localhost/users',
                'isActive' => false,
                'children' => [],
            ],
            // ...
        ],
    ],
    [
        'id' => 'nav-main-2',
        'label' => 'Logout',
        'url' => 'http://localhost/logout',
        'method' => 'post',  // Only present when specified
        'isActive' => false,
        'icon' => '<svg>...</svg>',
        'children' => [],
    ],
]

Frontend Integration

React + Inertia.js

import {Link} from '@inertiajs/react';

interface NavigationItem {
    id: string;
    label: string;
    url: string;
    method?: string;
    isActive: boolean;
    icon?: string;
    children: NavigationItem[];
}

export default function Navigation({items}: { items: NavigationItem[] }) {
    return (
        <nav>
            {items.map((item) => (
                <div key={item.id}>
                    {item.method ? (
                        <Link
                            href={item.url}
                            method={item.method}
                            as="button"
                            className={item.isActive ? 'active' : ''}
                        >
                            {item.icon && (
                                <span dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{__html: item.icon}}/>
                            )}
                            {item.label}
                        </Link>
                    ) : (
                        <Link href={item.url} className={item.isActive ? 'active' : ''}>
                            {item.icon && (
                                <span dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{__html: item.icon}}/>
                            )}
                            {item.label}
                        </Link>
                    )}

                    {item.children.length > 0 && (
                        <Navigation items={item.children}/>
                    )}
                </div>
            ))}
        </nav>
    );
}

TypeScript + React

// Pass from Laravel
const Page = ({navigation}: { navigation: NavigationItem[] }) => {
    return <Navigation items={navigation}/>;
};

Breadcrumbs Component

import {Link} from '@inertiajs/react';

interface Breadcrumb {
    label: string;
    url: string;
    route: string;
}

export default function Breadcrumbs({items}: { items: Breadcrumb[] }) {
    return (
        <nav aria-label="Breadcrumb">
            <ol className="flex space-x-2">
                {items.map((item, index) => (
                    <li key={item.route} className="flex items-center">
                        {index > 0 && <span className="mx-2">/</span>}
                        {index === items.length - 1 ? (
                            <span className="text-gray-500">{item.label}</span>
                        ) : (
                            <Link href={item.url} className="text-blue-600 hover:underline">
                                {item.label}
                            </Link>
                        )}
                    </li>
                ))}
            </ol>
        </nav>
    );
}

Icon Compilation

For optimal performance, compile Lucide icons to SVG strings instead of using the DynamicIcon component:

php artisan navigation:compile-icons

This command:

Extracts all icon names from your navigation config
Downloads SVG files from the Lucide CDN
Saves them as PHP arrays in storage/navigation/icons.php
Automatically includes them in your navigation output

Benefits:

✅ No runtime overhead
✅ No client-side icon loading
✅ Smaller bundle size
✅ Faster page loads

Add to your deployment process:

php artisan navigation:compile-icons

Route Validation

Ensure all route names in your navigation config exist:

php artisan navigation:validate

Output:

Validating navigation: main
Validating navigation: user_menu
Validating navigation: footer
✓ All navigation routes are valid!

Or if there are errors:

Validating navigation: main
✗ Found 1 invalid route(s):
  - main: Route 'users.invalid' not found (at: Users > Invalid Link)

Add to CI/CD:

# .github/workflows/tests.yml
- name: Validate Navigation
  run: php artisan navigation:validate

Advanced Features

Custom Attributes

Add any custom data to navigation items:

'navigations' => [
    'main' => [
        [
            'label' => 'Notifications',
            'route' => 'notifications.index',
            'badge' => '5',           // Custom attribute
            'badgeColor' => 'red',    // Custom attribute
            'requiresPro' => true,    // Custom attribute
        ],
    ],
],

These will be included in the output:

[
    'label' => 'Notifications',
    'url' => 'http://localhost/notifications',
    'badge' => '5',
    'badgeColor' => 'red',
    'requiresPro' => true,
    // ...
]

Conditional Visibility

Control which navigation items are visible based on permissions, authentication, or custom logic.

Using `visible` Attribute

Show/hide items with boolean values or callables:

'navigations' => [
    'main' => [
        // Static boolean
        [
            'label' => 'Beta Features',
            'route' => 'beta.index',
            'visible' => config('app.beta_enabled'),
        ],
        
        // Dynamic callable
        [
            'label' => 'Admin Panel',
            'route' => 'admin.index',
            'visible' => fn() => auth()->user()?->isAdmin(),
        ],
        
        // Complex logic
        [
            'label' => 'Premium Features',
            'route' => 'premium.index',
            'visible' => fn() => auth()->check() && auth()->user()->hasActiveSubscription(),
        ],
    ],
],

Using `can` Attribute (Authorization)

Leverage Laravel's authorization gates and policies:

'navigations' => [
    'main' => [
        // Simple gate check
        [
            'label' => 'Users',
            'route' => 'users.index',
            'can' => 'view-users',
        ],
        
        // Policy with model
        [
            'label' => 'Edit Post',
            'route' => 'posts.edit',
            'can' => ['update', $post],  // Checks: $user->can('update', $post)
        ],
        
        // Children inherit permissions
        [
            'label' => 'Admin',
            'route' => 'admin.index',
            'can' => 'access-admin',
            'children' => [
                ['label' => 'Users', 'route' => 'admin.users', 'can' => 'manage-users'],
                ['label' => 'Settings', 'route' => 'admin.settings'],
            ],
        ],
    ],
],

Combining Conditions

Use both visible and can together:

[
    'label' => 'Billing',
    'route' => 'billing.index',
    'visible' => fn() => config('features.billing_enabled'),
    'can' => 'view-billing',
]

Conditional Children

Filter child items independently:

[
    'label' => 'Reports',
    'route' => 'reports.index',
    'children' => [
        [
            'label' => 'Sales Report',
            'route' => 'reports.sales',
            'can' => 'view-sales',
        ],
        [
            'label' => 'Financial Report',
            'route' => 'reports.financial',
            'can' => 'view-financials',
        ],
        [
            'label' => 'Admin Report',
            'route' => 'reports.admin',
            'visible' => fn() => auth()->user()?->isAdmin(),
        ],
    ],
]

Note: If a parent has no visible children, the parent is still shown. If you want to hide the parent when all children are hidden, add a visible check to the parent too.

Define Gates in AuthServiceProvider

// app/Providers/AuthServiceProvider.php
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Gate;

public function boot(): void
{
    Gate::define('view-users', function ($user) {
        return $user->hasPermission('view-users');
    });
    
    Gate::define('access-admin', function ($user) {
        return $user->isAdmin();
    });
}

Benefits

✅ Security - Items requiring permissions won't appear in navigation
✅ Clean UI - Users only see what they can access
✅ DRY - Reuse existing gates and policies
✅ Flexible - Mix static config with dynamic logic
✅ Type Safe - All authorization goes through Laravel's auth system

Active State Detection

The package intelligently detects active states:

Exact match: If the current route is users.index, that item is active
Parent match: If current route is users.show, the parent users.index is also marked active
Child match: If current route is users.roles.index, both Users parent and Roles child are active

External URLs

Mix internal routes with external links:

[
    'label' => 'API Docs',
    'url' => 'https://api.example.com/docs',
    'icon' => 'book-open',
],

Action Items

Define items that trigger POST/DELETE requests:

[
    'label' => 'Logout',
    'route' => 'logout',
    'method' => 'post',
    'icon' => 'log-out',
],

Middleware Integration

Share navigation with all Inertia requests:

// app/Http/Middleware/HandleInertiaRequests.php

use SysMatter\Navigation\Facades\Navigation;

public function share(Request $request): array
{
    return array_merge(parent::share($request), [
        'navigation' => [
            'main' => Navigation::get('main')->toTree(),
            'user' => Navigation::get('user_menu')->toTree(),
            'footer' => Navigation::get('footer')->toTree(),
        ],
        'breadcrumbs' => Navigation::breadcrumbs('main'),
    ]);
}

Testing

Run the test suite:

./vendor/bin/pest

With coverage:

./vendor/bin/pest --coverage

Configuration Reference

Navigation Item Options

Option	Type	Description
`label`	string	Display text for the item
`route`	string	Laravel route name (e.g., `users.index`)
`url`	string	External URL (alternative to `route`)
`method`	string	HTTP method for actions (`post`, `delete`, etc.)
`icon`	string	Lucide icon name (e.g., `home`, `users`)
`children`	array	Nested navigation items
`visible`	bool\|callable	Controls visibility (static or dynamic)
`can`	string\|array	Gate/policy check (`'ability'` or `['ability', $model]`)
custom	mixed	Any custom attributes you want to include

Config Options

Option	Default	Description
`navigations`	`[]`	Array of named navigation structures
`icons.compiled_path`	`storage/navigation/icons.php`	Where to save compiled icons

Requirements

PHP 8.2+, 8.3+, 8.4+
Laravel 11.0+ or 12.0+

Contributing

Please see CONTRIBUTING for details.

Security

Please review our security policy for reporting vulnerabilities.

Credits

Shavonn Brown

License

MIT License. See LICENSE file for details.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 4 Commits
.github		.github
config		config
src		src
tests		tests
.gitignore		.gitignore
.release-please-manifest.json		.release-please-manifest.json
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md		CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
LICENSE.md		LICENSE.md
README.md		README.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md
captainhook.json		captainhook.json
composer.json		composer.json
phpstan-baseline.neon		phpstan-baseline.neon
phpstan.neon		phpstan.neon
phpunit.xml		phpunit.xml
pint.json		pint.json
release-please-config.json		release-please-config.json

License

sysmatter/laravel-navigation

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Laravel Navigation

Features

Installation

Configuration

Usage

Basic Usage

With Route Parameters

Breadcrumbs

Output Format

Frontend Integration

React + Inertia.js

TypeScript + React

Breadcrumbs Component

Icon Compilation

Route Validation

Advanced Features

Custom Attributes

Conditional Visibility

Using visible Attribute

Using can Attribute (Authorization)

Combining Conditions

Conditional Children

Define Gates in AuthServiceProvider

Benefits

Active State Detection

External URLs

Action Items

Middleware Integration

Testing

Configuration Reference

Navigation Item Options

Config Options

Requirements

Contributing

Security

Credits

License

About

Resources

License

Code of conduct

Contributing

Security policy

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Using `visible` Attribute

Using `can` Attribute (Authorization)

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