Write PHPue apps correctly the first time, with or without AI

What PHPue is (and is not)

PHPue is a server-side PHP framework by Edward Patch that compiles Vue-like single-file components (.pvue files) into plain PHP. A .pvue file has a <script> block (PHP), a <header> block (head tags), a <template> block (HTML with {{ }}, p-if and p-for) and a <cscript> block (browser JavaScript). There is no Node.js, bundler or required build step: two PHP files (index.php and conversion.php) route, compile and serve the app. The current release is PHPue 0.0.3, which needs PHP 8.0 or newer.

Tagline: Giving U Back Control. Official site: phpue.co.uk. Source: github.com/PHPue/PHPue.

Key facts

PHPue is NOT Vue

The syntax looks like Vue, but the model is classic server-rendered PHP:

• Everything inside {{ }}, p-if and p-for runs once, on the server, per request.
• There is no virtual DOM, no reactivity, no hydration, no props, no slots, no emits and no v-model.
• The <script> block is PHP, not JavaScript. Browser code goes in <cscript>.
• Components have no prop API by design: a component is inlined into its parent at compile time, so it sees every variable the parent has (like a PHP include).
• Raw PHP is always allowed and idiomatic. When a directive cannot express something, write <?php if (...): ?>, <?php foreach (...): ?> or <?= ... ?> in the template.
• Privacy-first forms: there is no input binding or keystroke tracking. Forms are submitted on purpose (a normal POST, or an explicit fetch to an @AJAX function).

Rule of thumb from the author: PHP owns the server. The browser layer is optional.

Project layout

www/                     web root and working directory (all paths are relative to it)
├── index.php            framework: server, router, builder
├── conversion.php       framework: .pvue -> PHP compiler
├── App.pvue             root layout: global <header>, navbar/footer, <View/>
├── views/               one .pvue per route (top level only): index.pvue -> "/", about.pvue -> "/about"
├── components/          reusable .pvue files (any depth), pulled in with @require
├── backend/             *.php auto-required on every request (classes, singletons, endpoints)
├── httpReqs/            http404.php + http404Head.php (custom 404 page)
├── assets/              css/ js/ img/, served statically at /assets/...
├── .htaccess            front controller + security rules (Apache)
└── .dist/               build output (when present, the server uses it instead of the .pvue sources)

How a request is served

1. index.php turns the URL path into a route slug (/about is about, / is index) and finds views/<slug>.pvue. Unknown slugs get the 404 page with HTTP status 404.
2. conversion.php compiles App.pvue and the view into PHP (or the precompiled .dist/ files are used).
3. The compiled App runs: every backend/*.php is loaded, the session is handled, and if the request names an @AJAX function (action), that function runs and the request ends.
4. Otherwise the App <script> runs, the <head> is printed (App header + view header), and the App template renders, replacing <View/> with the current view.
5. Each block's <cscript> is printed as a <script> tag after its markup.

The smallest complete app

<!-- www/App.pvue -->
<script>
    #require 'views/index.pvue';
</script>

<header>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
</header>

<template>
    <View/>
</template>

<!-- www/views/index.pvue -->
<script>
    $title = 'Hello PHPue';
    $features = ['No build step', 'Server-side rendering', 'Plain PHP underneath'];
</script>

<header>
    <title>Home</title>
</header>

<template>
    <h1>{{ $title }}</h1>
    <ul>
        <li p-for="$feature in $features">{{ $feature }}</li>
    </ul>
</template>

Run it with cd www && php -S localhost:3000 and open http://localhost:3000.

Where to go next

• Writing PHPue with an AI assistant or coding agent: Rules for AI coding agents.
• First app step by step: Quick start.
• Syntax in depth: .pvue files, Templates, Components, Routing, @AJAX.
• Something renders wrong: Common mistakes.
• Everything in one file for an LLM: /llms-full.txt.