Of the many features baked in laravel, the Eloquent ORM and specifically its Relationships are the most powerful. DrawERD, with its powerful schema design and code generation features, makes it easier than ever to visualize and implement these relationships. In this guide, we'll walk you through how to create and manage all types of Laravel Eloquent relationships using DrawERD.
Understanding Eloquent Relationships
Before diving into DrawERD, it’s important to grasp the core Eloquent relationships in Laravel:
- One-to-One: A relationship where one model is associated with exactly one other model.
- One-to-Many: A relationship where one model can be associated with multiple instances of another model.
- Many-to-Many: A relationship where multiple models can be associated with multiple instances of another model.
- HasOne/HasMany Through: A relationship where one model can indirectly access one or multiple related models through an intermediate model.
- Polymorphic Relationships: A flexible type of relationship where a model can belong to more than one type of model on a single association.
Getting Started with DrawERD
DrawERD provides a visual and intuitive way to design your database schema and define Eloquent relationships. Here’s how to create various relationship types using DrawERD:
Setting Up Your Schema
- Open DrawERD: Start by launching DrawERD and creating a new project or opening an existing one.
- Add Models: Use the drag-and-drop feature to add models that will participate in your relationships.
Creating a One-to-One Relationship
A one to ne relationship is a very basic type of relationship where one model is associated with exactly one ther model. We are going to use an example of a User model,
