Advanced Custom Error Handling and Logging Strategies in Laravel 11

Hello, laravel web developers! In this guide, I’ll walk you through setting up advanced error handling and logging strategies in Laravel 11. We’ll explore how to integrate Sentry, Bugsnag, and create custom error reporting.

By the end of this article, you’ll have a solid foundation to handle errors efficiently, especially in large-scale applications. This step-by-step guide will make it easy to understand and implement these strategies in your own Laravel projects.

Laravel uses Monolog as its default logger, and you can configure it in the config/logging.php file. Laravel handles errors by default using the Handler class located in app/Exceptions/Handler.php

Let’s start by customizing this error handler.

Update report Method in Handler.php:

namespace App\Exceptions;

use Illuminate\Foundation\Exceptions\Handler as ExceptionHandler;
use Throwable;

class Handler extends ExceptionHandler
{
    public function report(Throwable $exception)
    {
        if ($this->shouldReport($exception)) {
            // Add custom logic here for reporting errors
        }

        parent::report($exception);
    }
}

This report method is responsible for sending exceptions to external services or logging them.

 Sentry helps in tracking errors in real-time, providing detailed reports for debugging. First, you need to install the Sentry Laravel SDK.

Step 1: Install Sentry SDK

Run the following command in your terminal:

composer require sentry/sentry-laravel

Step 2: Configure Sentry in env File

Add your Sentry DSN (Data Source Name) in the env file.

SENTRY_LARAVEL_DSN=https://<key>@sentry.io/<project-id>

Step 3: Update the Handler.php to Report Errors to Sentry

Modify the report method in app/Exceptions/Handler.php:

use Sentry\State\HubInterface;

public function report(Throwable $exception)
{
    if (app()->bound(HubInterface::class) && $this->shouldReport($exception)) {
        app(HubInterface::class)->captureException($exception);
    }

    parent::report($exception);
}

Bugsnag provides detailed error monitoring and reports with actionable insights. Here’s how to integrate it into your Laravel app.

Step 1: Install Bugsnag

Run this command to install Bugsnag:

composer require bugsnag/bugsnag-laravel

Step 2: Configure Bugsnag in env

Add the Bugsnag API key in the env file:

BUGSNAG_API_KEY=your-bugsnag-api-key

Step 3: Modify the Handler.php to Report Errors to Bugsnag

Update the report method in app/Exceptions/Handler.php:

use Bugsnag\BugsnagLaravel\Facades\Bugsnag;

public function report(Throwable $exception)
{
    if ($this->shouldReport($exception)) {
        Bugsnag::notifyException($exception);
    }

    parent::report($exception);
}

You can also create a custom error reporting mechanism that sends an email when a critical error occurs.

Step 1: Update report Method for Email Notifications

In app/Exceptions/Handler.php, modify the report method to send email notifications for specific errors:

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Mail;

public function report(Throwable $exception)
{
    if ($this->shouldReport($exception)) {
        if ($exception instanceof \Exception) {
            Mail::raw($exception->getMessage(), function ($message) {
                $message->to('[email protected]')
                        ->subject('Critical Error Alert');
            });
        }
    }

    parent::report($exception);
}

Laravel provides multiple logging channels, allowing you to log errors to various destinations (e.g., files, databases, external services).

Step 1: Configure Log Channels in config/logging.php

Here’s an example of a custom log channel using the daily driver:

'daily' => [
    'driver' => 'daily',
    'path' => storage_path('logs/laravel.log'),
    'level' => 'error',
    'days' => 14,
],

You can also create custom log channels for external services like Sentry or Bugsnag:

'sentry' => [
    'driver' => 'monolog',
    'handler' => \Sentry\Monolog\Handler::class,
    'level' => 'error',
],

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