Queues in Laravel

Laravel queues allow deferring processes like sending emails and file uploads. They are used for resource-intensive tasks. Queues increase application speed by completing these processes in the background, improving user experience.

Origin

Laravel introduced queues to handle asynchronous processes better. They reduce load during user-facing operations and improve response time.

Why Are Queues Used?

1. Improves Performance: Offloading time-consuming tasks to background workers keeps the app responsive.
2. Improves Scalability: Workloads are distributed among numerous workers, allowing applications to accommodate increased traffic.
3. Supports Multiple Backends: Integrates smoothly with a variety of queue drivers, including databases, Redis, and Amazon SQS.

Best Practices.

1. Monitor Queues: Use tools like Laravel Horizon to track and manage queue performance in real time.
2. Use Retry Logic: To ensure reliability, set up retry attempts for unsuccessful jobs.
3. Optimize Workers: Change worker parameters to maximize efficiency and avoid wasting resources.

Example in Action

Create a job:

php artisan make:job ProcessOrder

In the job class:

namespace App\Jobs;

use Illuminate\Bus\Queueable;
use Illuminate\Contracts\Queue\ShouldQueue;

class ProcessOrder implements ShouldQueue
{
    use Queueable;

    public function handle()
    {
        // Task logic
    }
}

Dispatch the job:

ProcessOrder::dispatch($order);

Start a queue worker:

php artisan queue:work