Laravel 13 PHP Attributes

Agent Workflow (MANDATORY)

Before ANY implementation, use TeamCreate to spawn 3 agents:

1. fuse-ai-pilot:explore-codebase - Scan existing models/jobs/controllers for legacy protected $fillable / $hidden / $connection properties to convert
2. fuse-ai-pilot:research-expert - Verify Laravel 13 release notes for attribute coverage and edge cases
3. mcp__context7__query-docs - Pull authoritative examples from laravel.com/docs/13.x

After implementation, run fuse-ai-pilot:sniper for validation.

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Overview

Category	Attributes
Eloquent	#[Table] #[Connection] #[Fillable] #[Hidden] #[Visible] #[Guarded] #[Unguarded] #[Appends] #[Touches]
Queue / Job	#[Connection] #[Queue] #[Tries] #[Timeout] #[Backoff] #[MaxExceptions] #[FailOnTimeout] #[UniqueFor]
Console	#[Signature] #[Description]
Controllers	#[Middleware] #[Authorize]
Validation	#[RedirectTo] #[StopOnFirstFailure]
API Resources	#[Collects] #[PreserveKeys]
Factories / Seeders	#[UseModel] #[Seed] #[Seeder]

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Critical Rules

1. NEVER mix attributes and legacy properties - #[Fillable(['name'])] + protected $fillable = [...] causes Laravel to ignore the attribute silently
2. Class-level only - All Eloquent / Job / Controller attributes apply to the class, never to private/protected methods
3. Single source of truth - Choose attributes OR properties per class; refactor in one pass to avoid drift
4. Inheritance is additive - Child class attributes merge with parent attributes; redeclare to override
5. Import the right namespace - Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Attributes\* for Eloquent, Illuminate\Queue\Attributes\* for Jobs

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Architecture

app/
├── Models/
│   └── User.php              # #[Table] #[Fillable] #[Hidden] #[Appends]
├── Jobs/
│   └── ProcessPodcast.php    # #[Connection] #[Queue] #[Tries] #[Backoff]
├── Console/Commands/
│   └── SendEmails.php        # #[Signature] #[Description]
├── Http/
│   ├── Controllers/
│   │   └── PostController.php # #[Middleware] #[Authorize]
│   └── Resources/
│       └── PostCollection.php # #[Collects] #[PreserveKeys]
└── Http/Requests/
    └── StoreUserRequest.php   # #[RedirectTo] #[StopOnFirstFailure]

→ See Model-with-attributes.php.md for full example

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Reference Guide

Topic	Reference	When to Consult
Eloquent models	eloquent.md	Migrating $fillable / $hidden / $table / $connection
Queue jobs	queue.md	Replacing $tries / $timeout / $backoff properties
Console commands	console.md	Refactoring $signature / $description properties
Controllers	controllers.md	Moving middleware/authorize from constructors
Validation	validation.md	FormRequest redirect + early-stop config
API Resources	api-resources.md	Collection wrapping and key preservation
Factories / Seeders	factories-seeders.md	Model binding and seeder discovery

Templates

Template	When to Use
Model-with-attributes.php.md	Net new Eloquent model
Job-with-attributes.php.md	Net new queue Job

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Quick Reference

Eloquent model

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Attributes\{Table, Fillable, Hidden, Appends};

#[Table('flights')]
#[Fillable(['name', 'origin'])]
#[Hidden(['password'])]
#[Appends(['is_admin'])]
class Flight extends Model {}

Queue job

use Illuminate\Queue\Attributes\{Connection, Queue, Tries, Backoff};

#[Connection('redis')]
#[Queue('podcasts')]
#[Tries(5)]
#[Backoff([10, 30, 60])]
class ProcessPodcast implements ShouldQueue {}

→ See Job-with-attributes.php.md for complete example

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Best Practices

DO

• Convert one class at a time and run tests between commits
• Keep attribute imports grouped at the top via PHP 8.1 grouped use syntax
• Use #[Fillable] for mass-assigned models and #[Unguarded] only on trusted internal models
• Combine #[Connection] + #[Queue] on Jobs to centralize routing intent

DON'T

• Don't mix #[Fillable(['x'])] with protected $fillable = ['y'] - the property silently wins on some setups, the attribute on others
• Don't place Eloquent/Job attributes on methods - they target the class only
• Don't put #[Authorize] on a controller without an underlying Policy registered in AuthServiceProvider
• Don't forget to drop the legacy $tries, $backoff, $timeout properties after adding the attributes - duplication is a red flag for code review