To define, PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) refers to a server-side scripting language that is widely used for web development. It has been in existence since 1994, and over the years, it has become one of the most popular web development languages.

Here are some reasons why PHP is preferred and considered good for web development:

• Open-Source Language

One of the biggest advantages of PHP is that it is an open-source language. This means that it is free to use and distribute. Open-source also means that the code is available to the public, which allows developers to collaborate and contribute to the language’s development. This results in a large community of developers that are constantly improving PHP’s functionality, security, and reliability.

• Cross-Platform Compatibility

PHP is compatible with almost all operating systems, including Linux, Windows, and macOS. It also supports a wide range of web servers, including Apache, Nginx, and Microsoft IIS. This makes it an excellent choice for web developers who need to create websites and web applications that can run on different platforms.

• Easy to Learn and Use

This language is easy to learn and use, even beginners find it simple. Its syntax is similar to that of C, which is a widely used programming language. Additionally, its code is embedded in HTML, which makes it easy to integrate its code with web pages. This programming language facilitates excellent documentation, tutorials, and support for developers.

• Large Community and Rich Ecosystem

As mentioned earlier, PHP has a large and active community of developers. This community has created a vast ecosystem of libraries, frameworks, and tools that can be used to build robust and scalable web applications. Popular PHP frameworks include Laravel, CodeIgniter, and Symfony, among others.

• Scalability

PHP is highly scalable and able to handle large volumes of traffic without compromising performance. The user can also add more servers to the infrastructure if needed for expanding the program. This makes PHP an excellent choice for building large-scale web applications.

• Speed

PHP is known for its speed and efficiency. It is a compiled language, which means that it is faster than interpreted languages like JavaScript. Additionally, PHP has built-in caching mechanisms that can significantly improve performance.

• Integration with Databases

It integrates seamlessly with databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle. This makes it easy to build dynamic web applications that can retrieve and store data from databases.

• Versatility

With it, a wide range of web applications, including content management systems (CMS), e-commerce platforms, social networks, and more, can be built. Being a versatile language, it can adapt to different use cases and business needs.

• Continuous Development

PHP is a language that is constantly evolving. New features and improvements are added to the language with each new release. This means that this programming language is always up-to-date with the latest web development trends and technologies.

• Tools Used for Web Development

It is effective in building web applications at different levels of complexity, from simple websites to complex web-based systems. Below are some of the tools that PHP uses at different levels of web development:

• Front-end Development
  
  i) HTML/CSS: PHP works in conjunction with HTML and CSS to render the user interface of web applications.
  ii) JavaScript: This electronic language also interacts with JavaScript to enable dynamic web page interactions that you can see through form validation, user input handling, and AJAX requests.
  

• Back-end Development
  
  i) PHP frameworks: Its frameworks such as Laravel, Symfony, and CodeIgniter provide developers with pre-built code libraries that speed up web application development.
  ii) Databases: This language can interact with various databases such as MySQL, Oracle, and PostgreSQL to store and retrieve data.
  Web servers: It runs on web servers such as Apache, Nginx, and Microsoft IIS.
  

• DevOps
  
  i) Version control: PHP developers often use Git, Subversion, or Mercurial to manage their codebases.
  ii) Deployment tools: Tools like Jenkins, Travis CI, and CircleCI can automate the deployment process of web applications in this language.
  iii) Containerization: Docker and Kubernetes can be used to containerize and deploy PHP applications.

• Testing

i) PHPUnit: PHPUnit is a popular unit testing framework used by PHP developers to test their code.

ii) Selenium: Selenium is a testing tool that is used to test the user interface of web applications.

• Security

Security is a critical aspect of any web application development, and PHP provides a range of tools that can be used to ensure the security of web applications. Here are some popular PHP security tools:

PHP Security Scanner

• RIPS: RIPS is a popular static code analysis tool for detecting security vulnerabilities in PHP code.

PHP Web Application Firewalls (WAFs): There are certain firewalls that help in eliminating hacking attempts. 

• ModSecurity: ModSecurity is a widely used open-source WAF for PHP web applications that can be used to detect and block malicious requests to web servers.
• PHPIDS: PHPIDS is a simple but effective PHP intrusion detection system that can detect attacks such as SQL injection, XSS, and CSRF.

PHP Cryptography Libraries

• OpenSSL: It is a popular cryptographic library that provides support for the encryption and decryption of data, secure communication over networks, and digital signatures.
• Sodium: It is a newer PHP cryptographic library that provides a range of cryptographic functions, including authenticated encryption, message signing, and password hashing.

PHP Dependency Checkers

• Composer: Composer is a package manager for PHP that can be used to manage dependencies in a PHP project. It can also check for vulnerabilities in dependencies and suggest updates.

PHP Code Obfuscation Tools

• IonCube: Being a popular tool, it can be used to obfuscate PHP code to protect it from reverse engineering and tampering.
• Zend Guard: This is another PHP code obfuscation tool that can be used to encode PHP scripts and protect them from unauthorized access.

This language is evolving every day, which an expert developer stays tuned with. So, you should hire a dedicated PHP developer remotely for any kind of system development and meet expectations.