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Requirements

Before installing WireChat, ensure your environment meets these requirements:

PHP

^8.1|^8.2|^8.3|^8.4

Laravel

^10.0|^11.0|^12.0

Livewire

^3.2.3

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Install via Composer

1

Install the Package

Install WireChat using Composer:
composer require wirechat/wirechat
2

Run the Installation Command

Run the WireChat installation command to publish configuration and migrations:
php artisan wirechat:install
This command will:
  • Publish the configuration file to config/wirechat.php
  • Publish migrations to database/migrations/
  • Create a storage symlink
  • Create a default panel provider at app/Providers/Wirechat/ChatsPanelProvider.php
If the config file already exists, you’ll be prompted whether to overwrite it.
3

Run Migrations

Run the migrations to create the necessary database tables:
php artisan migrate
This creates the following tables:
  • wirechat_conversations
  • wirechat_messages
  • wirechat_participants
  • wirechat_groups
  • Related tables for attachments and message reads

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Configuration

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Configuration File

The main configuration file is located at config/wirechat.php:
config/wirechat.php
<?php

return [
    /*
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    | Use UUIDs for Conversations
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    */
    'uses_uuid_for_conversations' => false,

    /*
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    | Table Prefix
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    */
    'table_prefix' => 'wirechat_',

    /*
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    | Storage
    |--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    */
    'storage' => [
        'disk' => 'public',
        'visibility' => 'public',
        'directories' => [
            'attachments' => 'attachments',
        ],
    ],
];
The uses_uuid_for_conversations and table_prefix settings are intended for new applications only and must be configured before running migrations.

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Service Provider Registration

WireChat’s service provider is automatically registered via Laravel’s package auto-discovery. The package is configured in composer.json:
composer.json
{
    "extra": {
        "laravel": {
            "providers": [
                "Wirechat\\Wirechat\\WirechatServiceProvider"
            ]
        }
    }
}

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Panel Provider

During installation, a default panel provider is created at app/Providers/Wirechat/ChatsPanelProvider.php:
app/Providers/Wirechat/ChatsPanelProvider.php
<?php

namespace App\Providers\Wirechat;

use Wirechat\Wirechat\Panel;
use Wirechat\Wirechat\PanelProvider;

class ChatsPanelProvider extends PanelProvider
{
    public function panel(Panel $panel): Panel
    {
        return $panel
             ->id('chats')
             ->path('chats')
             ->middleware(['web','auth'])
             ->default();
    }
}
This panel provider is automatically registered in your application:
  • Laravel 11+: Added to bootstrap/providers.php
  • Laravel 10: Added to config/app.php providers array
You can create additional panels for different contexts (e.g., admin chat, support chat) using:
php artisan make:wirechat-panel support

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Implement the WirechatUser Interface

Your User model must implement the WirechatUser interface to define chat permissions:
app/Models/User.php
<?php

namespace App\Models;

use Illuminate\Foundation\Auth\User as Authenticatable;
use Wirechat\Wirechat\Contracts\WirechatUser;
use Wirechat\Wirechat\Panel;

class User extends Authenticatable implements WirechatUser
{
    /**
     * Determine if the user can create new groups.
     */
    public function canCreateGroups(): bool
    {
        return true;
    }

    /**
     * Determine if the user can create new chats with other users.
     */
    public function canCreateChats(): bool
    {
        return true;
    }

    /**
     * Determine if the user can access wirechat panel.
     */
    public function canAccessWirechatPanel(Panel $panel): bool
    {
        return true;
    }
}
All three methods (canCreateGroups, canCreateChats, canAccessWirechatPanel) are required by the interface and must be implemented.

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Add Assets to Your Layout

Add WireChat’s assets and styles to your main layout file:
resources/views/layouts/app.blade.php
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="{{ str_replace('_', '-', app()->getLocale()) }}">
<head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
    <title>{{ config('app.name') }}</title>
    
    @vite(['resources/css/app.css', 'resources/js/app.js'])
    @livewireStyles
    @wirechatStyles
</head>
<body>
    {{ $slot }}
    
    @livewireScripts
    @wirechatAssets
</body>
</html>
The @wirechatStyles directive injects CSS variables for theming and the @wirechatAssets directive loads JavaScript for modal handling and notifications.

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Optional: Publishing Assets

You can optionally publish WireChat’s views and translations for customization: 
php artisan vendor:publish --tag=wirechat-views
Published files will be available at:
  • Views: resources/views/vendor/wirechat/
  • Translations: lang/vendor/wirechat/

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What’s Next?

Now that WireChat is installed, proceed to the Quick Start guide to embed your first chat component.