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Deployer
What it is
Deployer is a free, open-source tool for deploying PHP applications to servers. It switches atomic symlinks during deployment to avoid showing a broken state, and its command line can roll back to the most recent good release. Projects describe hosts and tasks in a deploy.php or deploy.yaml recipe, with room to add custom build tasks. Tasks run in parallel across selected hosts by default, while the CLI can limit concurrency. Recipes cover frameworks and platforms such as Laravel, Symfony, WordPress, Drupal, Magento, CakePHP, CodeIgniter, Yii, Contao, Shopware, TYPO3, and Sulu. Deployer connects to hosts over SSH, can open an interactive session, and includes a recipe for provisioning Ubuntu with firewall, PHP, database, and HTTPS configuration. Provisioning a new server requires root SSH key authentication. Installation options include Composer, Phive, a PHAR bundle, or Docker. CI/CD guidance covers GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD, and Bitbucket Pipelines. It can target remote servers, localhost, Amazon EC2 instances, and Ubuntu VPS hosts.
For and against
For
- Free and open source
- Rolls back to the most recent good release
- Supports parallel deployment across selected hosts
- Recipes cover numerous PHP frameworks
Against
- Ubuntu provisioning requires root SSH key authentication
- Deployment hosts are accessed over SSH
- Provisioning recipe targets Ubuntu
The verdict
Deployer provides PHP deployment, release rollback, and server provisioning through recipe-defined tasks. Its free model and CI/CD guidance may appeal to teams comfortable configuring hosts and SSH access.
Who it suits
Deployer may suit PHP teams that want to define deployment hosts and tasks in project recipes. Its documentation recommends project installation for CI/CD pipelines that need a pinned Deployer version.
Plans and prices
Free and open source
PHP deployment tool; no paid plan or usage limits stated
Read 11 Oct 2026 · deployer.org
On the record
- CI/CD integrations
- The CI/CD guide documents usage with GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD and Bitbucket Pipelines.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Configuration
- A recipe defines hosts and tasks, and can be written as deploy.php or deploy.yaml.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Customization
- Projects define hosts and tasks in a deploy.php or deploy.yaml recipe and can add custom build tasks.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Deployment
- It uses atomic symlink switching for zero downtime deployments and says a failed deployment can be rolled back in one command.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Framework support
- The site lists recipes for PHP frameworks and platforms including Laravel, Symfony, WordPress, Drupal, Magento, CakePHP, CodeIgniter, Yii, Contao, Shopware, TYPO3, and Sulu.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Installation
- Deployer can be installed globally or per project through Composer, via Phive, or as a PHAR bundle; the download page also lists Docker.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Install options
- The documentation describes global and project Composer installations, Phive installation, and a Phar bundle that requires no Composer.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- License
- The GitHub repository identifies Deployer as MIT licensed.github.com · read 11 Oct 2026
- Parallel deployment
- Deployer can deploy to multiple servers simultaneously using parallel connections.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Provisioning
- The provision recipe configures a server, including its firewall, PHP, database, and HTTPS.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Provisioning requirement
- The provision recipe targets Ubuntu and requires root SSH key authentication to provision a new server.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Deployer describes itself as a PHP deployment tool for deploying PHP applications.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Recipes
- The documentation lists recipes for frameworks and platforms including Laravel, Symfony, WordPress, Drupal, Magento and TYPO3.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Release management
- The CLI can list releases and roll back to the most recent good release before the current one.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Remote access
- Deployer connects to deployment hosts over SSH and can open an interactive SSH session using its host configuration.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Rollback
- The site says you can revert to a previous release in seconds.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Security practice
- The host guide recommends keeping sensitive SSH parameters out of deploy.php and storing them in ~/.ssh/config.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
- Server access
- Deployer connects to servers over SSH and reads the user's SSH configuration.deployer.org · read 11 Oct 2026
