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Northwestern Laravel Starter

Introduction

The Northwestern Laravel Starter is a robust, enterprise-focused Laravel starter kit tailored for Northwestern University projects. This opinionated project provides everything you need to build secure, scalable, and maintainable web applications or fully API-driven services.

What This Starter Provides

Section titled “What This Starter Provides”

Northwestern Integrations

  • WebSSO/Entra ID - Single sign-on with Northwestern authentication
  • Directory Search API - User lookup and demographic sync
  • Wildcard Photos - ID photo integration with auto-caching
  • EventHub - Publish to topics and consume events through configured webhooks

Architecture

  • Domain-Driven Design - Organized by business concerns
  • Action-Based Logic - Single-responsibility action classes
  • Idempotent Seeding - Production-safe database seeders
  • Advanced Permissions - Fine-grained role-based access

Security & Compliance

  • Multi-Auth Methods - SSO, Access Tokens, passwordless codes
  • Comprehensive Auditing - Complete trail of all changes
  • Data Encryption - At-rest and in-transit protection
  • User Impersonation - Secure troubleshooting capability

API Features

  • Token Management - Rotation, expiration, IP allowlists, notifications
  • Request Analytics - Performance metrics & sampling
  • RFC 9457 Errors - Standardized error responses
  • Trace IDs - Correlate logs and requests easily

User Interface

  • Filament 4 - Modern administration interface
  • Pre-built Resources - Users, roles, tokens, audits
  • Analytics Dashboards - Login trends & API metrics
  • Northwestern Branding - University styling guidelines

Developer Experience

  • Database Snapshots - Save/restore state instantly
  • Health Checks - Monitor platform services
  • Laravel Telescope - Powerful debugging tool
  • CI/CD Ready - GitHub Actions workflows included

Who Should Use This Starter

Section titled “Who Should Use This Starter”
  • Northwestern IT Projects - Any web application or API being built for Northwestern University that needs integration with University services.
  • Administrative Systems - Applications requiring user management, authentication, audit logging, and compliance with University policies.
  • API Services - Fully API-driven services that integrate with other Northwestern systems.