> On Oct 31, 2025, at 10:50, Dan Jessen <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Hello everyone, > > I’d like to start a discussion about the potential for PHP to have an > official Language Server, implementing the Language Server Protocol (LSP) — > similar to what other programming languages already provide (e.g. Go’s gopls, > Elixir’s Expert, etc.). > > This is not yet a formal RFC, but rather an exploration of whether there’s > community interest in such a concept, and what form it could take if we > agreed it’s worth pursuing. > > Background / Motivation > Currently, PHP developers rely on various third-party or editor-specific > language servers, including Psalm, Intelephense, and phpactor. These tools > are impressive, but they differ in capabilities, maintenance status, and > licensing (some are commercial). > Additionally, several editors (e.g. VS Code, PhpStorm) implement their own > non-standardized integrations. > > By contrast, many modern languages now provide an official language server as > part of their toolchain. For example: > Go: gopls > Elixir: Expert (official successor to the community-built ElixirLS) > Rust: rust-analyzer > TypeScript: TypeScript Server > These servers improve consistency, tooling integration, and accessibility — > independent of any specific IDE or vendor. > > Why PHP Could Benefit > Toolchain Completeness > A programming language should ideally include its own ecosystem of core tools > — including syntax checking, testing, and language intelligence. > Editor Independence > PHP is often associated with PhpStorm because of its strong analysis > features. An official LSP would level the playing field, enabling advanced > features in any editor that supports the protocol. > Standardization > A unified and standardized LSP implementation would reduce fragmentation and > improve interoperability across IDEs and plugins. > Accessibility and Onboarding > Lowering the barrier for new developers by providing consistent, > out-of-the-box editor support. > > Existing Building Blocks > The PHP runtime already provides components that could serve as a foundation > — e.g. php -l for syntax checking, reflection APIs, AST via php-ast, and > insights from static analysis tools like Psalm or PHPStan. > > This wouldn’t necessarily mean rewriting existing tools, but defining a > common standard — potentially leveraging or integrating with those efforts. > > Next Steps > I’m not currently in a position to build such a server myself, but I’d like > to open a discussion around: > Whether this aligns with PHP’s roadmap and philosophy. > Any prior work or discussion on the topic. > The potential scope — e.g., core toolchain addition, PECL extension, or > standalone PHP project under the official organization. > If there’s interest, I’d be happy to draft a more formal RFC to outline > possible goals, structure, and implementation paths. > > Thanks for reading — I’d really appreciate your thoughts, pointers to prior > work, or any guidance on how best to take this forward. > > Best regards, > Dan
Would such a thing need to be in php-src, or could it be started as a separate code base? IOW, could this be an independent project maintained outside of internals and donated to the PHP project? Cheers, Ben
