We have incorporated the new PHP 8.0 (Alpha) version into the Control Panel

Lately, the PHP team unveiled the initial testing release of PHP 8.0.0, known as Alpha, marking the beginning of PHP 8.0's release journey.

The official production-ready version of PHP 8.0 is anticipated to launch by year-end.

PHP 8.0 signifies a significant update, bringing both breaking changes and a range of powerful features and performance enhancements.

This major PHP release aligns with the celebration of the programming language's 25th anniversary, offering exciting developments for the global PHP community.

What are the main highlights of PHP 8.0?

Let's explore some of the standout features expected in PHP 8.0, which promise to enhance PHP's overall performance and reliability.

• 1. PHP JIT (Just in Time) Compiler: One of the most highly anticipated additions in PHP 8 is the Just-in-time (JIT) compiler. This feature is set to revolutionize the way PHP code is interpreted, bringing substantial performance enhancements. JIT will enable PHP to introduce language-specific features and support CPU-intensive tasks such as Machine Learning, Game Development, or User Interface development.
• 2. Union Types: PHP 8.0 introduces support for Union Types, allowing developers to declare multiple types for properties, parameters, and return types. This capability was not available in previous PHP versions.
• 3. Attributes: Attributes, also known as annotations in other programming languages, are another noteworthy addition in PHP 8. They enable developers to add structured metadata to classes, methods, variables, and more.

As PHP 8 is currently in active development, there may be additional changes or new features introduced before the Feature Freeze on August 4th. For a comprehensive list of features in PHP 8.0 and code examples, you can refer to the official documentation.

How to activate PHP 8 in your Control Panel?

The PHP 8.0 (Alpha) version can be found in the Advanced section of the Web Hosting Control Panel.

Upon accessing it, simply navigate to the PHP settings tab and choose the version from the Account PHP Version menu.

If you wish to enable PHP 8.0 for a particular host, you can do so through the 'PHP per Host' tab.

Please note that this is not a stable, production-ready version and should only be used for testing purposes.