Why BoomStick?
Look, we've all seen the Necronomicon of web frameworks out there. But here's the thing — PHP was literally born for this. While other languages are trying to be everything to everyone (and failing spectacularly), PHP woke up one day and said "I'm going to be the best damn server-side web language there is."
- Native templating — it's a template language at its core, not an afterthought bolted on like a chainsaw to a stump
- Blazing performance — PHP 8.x with OPcache makes other languages look like they're running through molasses
- php-fpm + NginX — a match made in heaven, handling thousands of requests while barely breaking a sweat
- Battle-tested — powering over 75% of the web, including sites that would make Deadites weep
You know what's scarier than a cabin full of Deadites? Framework bloat.
Every other PHP framework out there is trying to be "enterprise-ready" with seventeen layers of abstraction, dependency injection containers that need their own documentation, and enough magic methods to make Merlin jealous.
BoomStick says "Hail to the king, baby" and cuts through all that noise. No trendy bullshit. No over-engineered nonsense. Just a clean, focused MVC structure that does exactly what you need — and nothing more.
Shop smart. Shop S-Mart... er, BoomStick.
BoomStick wasn't cobbled together by some intern who just discovered what MVC stands for. It's the brainchild of seasoned web architects who've been in the trenches.
We're talking developers who've built and maintained systems handling:
- High volume — millions of requests without flinching
- High demand — peak traffic that would make your average framework curl up and cry
- High security — because getting hacked is worse than being possessed by a Kandarian demon
This framework is built by people who've seen things. Horrible things. And they've used that trauma to create something beautiful.
Before You Start
- Docker is installed and you have a general understanding of how to use it (Installation Instructions)
- PHP Composer is installed and you can execute it via
composer(Installation Instructions) - NodeJS/NPM is installed at a moderately current version (Installation Instructions)
- You are using Linux (these instructions are Debian/Ubuntu based)
- This should work under any OS, but the specifics of the process are only documented for Linux (...for now)
- A complete Docker installation including all required services to run a local development environment (nginx, php, nodejs, composer, etc.)
- Installs the default entry module and gives you a working site that you can hack apart at will (...even if you don't have a chainsaw attached to your arm)
Getting Started
Step-by-Step Tutorial
New to BoomStick? Our detailed Getting Started guide walks you through every command, explaining what each step does and why. Perfect for those who want to understand the framework from the ground up.
We'll hold your hand through the entire process — no chainsaw required.
Or, if you're a seasoned veteran who just wants to get things done...
TL;DR — "Gimme some sugar, baby"
Too long, didn't read? We get it. You've got Deadites to slay and code to ship. Set your module name and run the one-liner below.
First, export your module name as a variable. Replace bang with whatever you want to call your module:
export module="bang"git clone https://github.com/cedarcoasters/boomstick.git BoomStick-$module && cd BoomStick-$module && ./bin/make-module -m $module && cd module/entry-$module && ./entry-init.sh && cd ../../ && ./bin/make-module -t nodejs --entry-point-module=$module -m $module && cd ./module/nodejs-$module/ && npm install && npm run all && cd ../../ && ./bin/make-module -t composer --entry-point-module=$module -m $module && cd ./module/composer-$module && ./init-entry.sh && cd ../../ && docker compose up --build