PHP 7 Is Coming

Tuesday, November 24th, 2015

PHP 7 Is Coming

What's the big deal with PHP 7? In one word: speed.

After a wait of more than a decade, the release of the next major version of PHP is now imminent. PHP, the server-side scripting language that powers the majority of websites on the internet, intends to release version 7 before the end of 2015. (PHP version 6 was planned and then abandoned, hence the jump to PHP 7).

What's New in PHP 7?

Quite a lot actually.  A great number of language fixes and others focusing on performance and removing inconsistencies have been major focuses for this  release of PHP.  But here are the major takeaways:

  • Speed, speed, speed. PHP 7 is up to twice as fast as the current release, PHP 5.6.
  • Consistent 64 bit support. Because... it's 2015!
  • Cleaner / leaner code: the new release removes deprecated items and disallows some poor programming practices.

PHP 7 brings drastic performance improvements and modern features.

Deploying PHP 7

What Does That Mean For Your Website?

Faster page loads, essentially. You'll especially see this if your website receives substantial traffic. And PHP 7 will absolutely shine for those who have websites that run on content management systems like
Word Press, ExpressionEngine, Drupal, or our tool of choice - Craft.

It's worth noting, however, that PHP 7 will introduce breaking changes to the platform. Or, in other words, if you are running platforms that were based on older versions of PHP and not updated, you can expect them not to run on PHP 7.