PHP-Parser is a tool that converts PHP source code into an abstract syntax tree for static analysis and programmatic manipulation. It functions as a parser, a code generator, and a static analysis framework.
The project enables the programmatic construction of abstract syntax tree nodes through a fluent interface and provides the ability to transform these trees back into formatted source code. It includes a serializer that exports abstract syntax trees to JSON format and reconstructs them from strings.
The toolset covers several capability areas, including namespace resolution, constant expression evaluation, and the traversal or modification of tree nodes using visitor patterns. These features support a range of language tooling tasks such as automated refactoring, code transformation, and the enforcement of coding standards.