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name: laravel-validation description: Form request validation and comprehensive validation testing. Use when working with validation rules, form requests, validation testing, or when user mentions validation, form requests, validation rules, conditional validation, validation testing.

Laravel Validation

Form requests as single source of truth for validation, with comprehensive testing patterns.

Core Concepts

form-requests.md - Validation rules:

• Array-based validation rules
• Custom validation rules
• Conditional validation
• Custom error messages
• DTO transformation via toDto()

validation-testing.md - Validation testing:

• RequestDataProviderItem helper
• Pest datasets for systematic testing
• Built-in helper methods (string, email, number, date, array, boolean)
• Nested array testing
• Conditional validation testing
• Real-world examples

Pattern

Copyfinal class CreateOrderRequest extends FormRequest
{
    public function rules(): array
    {
        return [
            'user_id' => ['required', 'integer', 'exists:users,id'],
            'items' => ['required', 'array', 'min:1'],
            'items.*.product_id' => ['required', 'integer'],
            'items.*.quantity' => ['required', 'integer', 'min:1'],
        ];
    }

    public function toDto(): CreateOrderDto
    {
        return CreateOrderDto::from($this->validated());
    }
}

All validation lives in form requests. Test validation systematically.