CLAUDE.md

This file provides guidance to Claude Code (claude.ai/code) when working with code in this repository.

Development Commands

Database Setup

# Import schema (Linux/macOS/WSL)
mysql -u root -p php_lms < database/schema.sql

# Import demo data
mysql -u root -p php_lms < database/seed.sql

# Set upload permissions
chmod 755 public/uploads/

Local Development

# PHP built-in server (testing only)
php -S localhost:8000 -t public

# Or place in XAMPP htdocs and access via:
# http://localhost/php-lms/public/

Docker Development

# Build and run with Docker Compose
docker-compose up -d

# Access at http://localhost:8080

Architecture Overview

MVC-Inspired Structure

Entry Point:
```
public/index.php
```
- main router with session-based authentication
Controllers: Handle HTTP requests and business logic in
```
src/controllers/
```
Models: Database interaction layer using MySQLi with prepared statements in
```
src/models/
```
Views: PHP templates with embedded HTML in
```
src/views/
```

Routing System

Simple query-parameter based routing via

public/index.php

?page=admin&section=courses&action=create&id=1

Admin routes require
```
$_SESSION['role'] === 'admin'
```
Automatic controller instantiation and method calling

Database Architecture

Soft Delete Pattern: Most tables use
```
archived
```
column instead of hard deletes
Hierarchical Topics: Self-referencing
```
topics
```
table with
```
parent_topic_id
```
Progress Tracking:
```
progress
```
table tracks student completion status
Activity Logging:
```
activities
```
table for audit trail
File Management: Upload paths stored in database, files in
```
public/uploads/
```

Security Features

Password hashing with
```
password_hash()
```
and
```
PASSWORD_DEFAULT
```
Prepared statements throughout for SQL injection prevention
Session-based authentication with role checking
File upload validation and secure storage

Frontend Stack

No Build Process: Pure vanilla HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
CSS Design System: Custom properties and BEM methodology in
```
public/css/style.css
```
Theme Management: Dark/light theme with localStorage persistence
Accessibility: WCAG 2.1 AA compliant with ARIA attributes

Key Models and Controllers

Core Models

```
User
```
: Authentication, role management, soft delete with archive/restore
```
Course
```
: Course management with semester organization
```
Topic
```
: Hierarchical content structure (topics → subtopics)
```
Lecture
```
: Content delivery with file attachments and submission requirements
```
Enrollment
```
: Student-course relationships
```
Submission
```
: Student assignment submissions with grading

Controller Patterns

Controllers use
```
require_once
```
for model dependencies
Views included directly with
```
include __DIR__ . '/../views/...'
```
Form processing in same method as display (POST vs GET)
Redirect-after-POST pattern for form submissions

Database Connection

Environment variables loaded from
```
.env
```
file
MySQLi connection in
```
config/db.php
```
Global
```
$conn
```
variable used throughout models
Default credentials:
```
root
```
user,
```
php_lms
```
database

File Upload System

Files stored in
```
public/uploads/
```
directory
Database stores relative file paths
Upload validation by file type and size
Secure filename generation to prevent conflicts

Development Notes

No package manager or build tools required
Pure PHP without frameworks or dependencies
Database migrations in
```
database/migrations/
```
Seed data available in
```
database/seed.sql
```
XAMPP recommended for Windows development
Archive functionality provides soft delete with restore capability

Development Commands

# Import schema (Linux/macOS/WSL)
mysql -u root -p php_lms < database/schema.sql

# Import demo data
mysql -u root -p php_lms < database/seed.sql

# Set upload permissions
chmod 755 public/uploads/

# PHP built-in server (testing only)
php -S localhost:8000 -t public

# Or place in XAMPP htdocs and access via:
# http://localhost/php-lms/public/

# Build and run with Docker Compose
docker-compose up -d

# Access at http://localhost:8080

Architecture Overview

Entry Point:

public/index.php

- main router with session-based authentication

Controllers: Handle HTTP requests and business logic in

src/controllers/

Models: Database interaction layer using MySQLi with prepared statements in

src/models/

Views: PHP templates with embedded HTML in

src/views/

Simple query-parameter based routing via

public/index.php

?page=admin&section=courses&action=create&id=1

Admin routes require

$_SESSION['role'] === 'admin'

Automatic controller instantiation and method calling

Soft Delete Pattern: Most tables use

archived

column instead of hard deletes

Hierarchical Topics: Self-referencing

topics

table with

parent_topic_id

Progress Tracking:

progress

table tracks student completion status

Activity Logging:

activities

table for audit trail

File Management: Upload paths stored in database, files in

public/uploads/

Password hashing with

password_hash()

and

PASSWORD_DEFAULT

Prepared statements throughout for SQL injection prevention

Session-based authentication with role checking

File upload validation and secure storage

No Build Process: Pure vanilla HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

CSS Design System: Custom properties and BEM methodology in

public/css/style.css

Theme Management: Dark/light theme with localStorage persistence

Accessibility: WCAG 2.1 AA compliant with ARIA attributes

Key Models and Controllers

User

: Authentication, role management, soft delete with archive/restore

Course

: Course management with semester organization

Topic

: Hierarchical content structure (topics → subtopics)

Lecture

: Content delivery with file attachments and submission requirements

Enrollment

: Student-course relationships

Submission

: Student assignment submissions with grading

Controllers use

require_once

for model dependencies

Views included directly with

include __DIR__ . '/../views/...'

Form processing in same method as display (POST vs GET)

Redirect-after-POST pattern for form submissions

CLAUDE.md

CLAUDE.md

Development Commands

Database Setup

Local Development

Docker Development

Architecture Overview

MVC-Inspired Structure

Routing System

Database Architecture

Security Features

Frontend Stack

Key Models and Controllers

Core Models

Controller Patterns

Database Connection

File Upload System

Development Notes

Related Skills

Markdown Converter

Nano Banana Pro

1password

CLAUDE.md

Development Commands

Database Setup

Local Development

Docker Development

Architecture Overview

MVC-Inspired Structure

Routing System

Database Architecture

Security Features

Frontend Stack

Key Models and Controllers

Core Models

Controller Patterns

Database Connection

File Upload System

Development Notes