2025 was a truly exceptional year for n98-magerun2. While the tool celebrated its 10th anniversary, the project team focused firmly on the future rather than resting on past achievements. The year was defined by deep technical modernization, major architectural decisions, and a strong response to the ongoing fragmentation of the Magento ecosystem. With multiple releases, new commands, and a growing contributor base, n98-magerun2 reinforced its role as the indispensable CLI companion for Magento developers.

2025 in Numbers: Project Activity at a Glance

From a quantitative perspective, 2025 was one of the most active years in the project’s history. Five releases were published, ranging from major version jumps to targeted patch releases. Around 200 issues and pull requests were processed, reflecting a continuous and healthy development flow. Eight new major commands were introduced, extending the tool’s capabilities across backend, frontend, and DevOps workflows. These numbers underline that n98-magerun2 is not a maintenance-only project, but an actively evolving platform.

A Fast-Paced Release Cycle

The release cadence in 2025 was particularly dense in the first half of the year. Within just a few months, the project moved from version 8 to version 9. This pace was largely driven by external dependencies such as PHP and Symfony, whose faster release cycles required timely adaptation. A critical patch release during the summer demonstrated the team’s ability to react quickly to regressions and maintain a high level of reliability even during major refactorings.

Community and Contributors

While n98-magerun2 continues to be strongly shaped by its lead maintainer, 2025 clearly showed that it is no longer a one-person project. Community contributions played a crucial role, particularly in areas such as Hyvä integration, Mage-OS compatibility, performance improvements for large databases, and documentation. This diversity of contributors brought valuable perspectives from frontend development, enterprise-scale operations, and quality assurance, significantly enriching the project.

Technical Evolution in the Anniversary Year

One of the defining themes of 2025 was the deliberate break with legacy technologies. This was a necessary step to ensure the long-term sustainability of the tool and to stay aligned with the Magento platform itself.

Goodbye PHP 7, Hello Modern PHP

With the release of version 8.0.0, support for PHP 7 officially ended. This decision aligned n98-magerun2 with Magento’s own requirements and unlocked the use of modern PHP features throughout the codebase. While this meant that older Magento installations had to remain on previous magerun versions, it allowed the project to move forward without the burden of outdated constraints.

Symfony 6.4 as a New Foundation

The jump to version 9.0.0 was largely driven by the upgrade to Symfony 6.4, a long-term support release. This transition required extensive refactoring due to removed deprecated APIs, but it also delivered tangible benefits. Improved console performance, better output formatting, and a more future-proof architecture now form the backbone of n98-magerun2 for the coming years.

Documentation Becomes a Product

In 2025, documentation received the attention it deserved. The migration from a monolithic README file to a dedicated Docusaurus-based documentation site significantly improved usability. Clear separation between user guides, developer documentation, and command references, combined with full-text search, made it much easier for both new and experienced users to find relevant information.

New Commands and Feature Highlights

Beyond infrastructure and architecture, 2025 delivered a wealth of practical features aimed at solving real-world problems faced by Magento developers.

dev:keep-calm – A Safety Net for Stressful Deployments

The humorously named dev:keep-calm command addresses a very serious scenario: broken deployments. By automating a well-defined recovery sequence, it helps developers restore a working system quickly and consistently, even under pressure.

Hyvä Integration and Frontend Awareness

The growing adoption of Hyvä as a modern Magento frontend was reflected in dedicated build commands. By integrating frontend build processes directly into the CLI, n98-magerun2 strengthened the bridge between backend and frontend workflows.

Database Operations for Enterprise Scale

Database handling saw significant improvements, including proper support for database views and the integration of multi-threaded dumping via mydumper. These enhancements are particularly valuable for large installations where performance and data integrity are critical.

Challenges Faced in 2025

Not all progress came without obstacles. The strict move away from legacy PHP versions required careful communication with users maintaining older Magento projects. Additionally, a regression in database dump logic after a major refactoring highlighted the complexity of the tool’s internals. Thanks to rapid community feedback and a swift patch release, the issue was resolved quickly. Continuous maintenance of CI/CD pipelines also demanded considerable effort to keep up with evolving platforms and dependencies.

Ten Years of n98-magerun2 – And What Comes Next

In November 2025, n98-magerun2 celebrated its 10th anniversary. What began as an internal tool has become a global standard, preinstalled on countless Magento hosting environments. The developments of 2025 clearly show that the project is not slowing down. With a modernized foundation, a vibrant community, and a strong focus on developer experience, n98-magerun2 is well prepared for the next decade.

Conclusion

2025 was a year of bold decisions and significant progress. By embracing modern technologies, expanding its feature set, and investing in documentation and community collaboration, n98-magerun2 reaffirmed its position as the Swiss Army knife for Magento developers. The anniversary year was not a retrospective pause, but a powerful step forward.