Worked on the laravel/framework repository to enhance API reliability during maintenance periods by addressing how JSON requests are handled. Focused on backend development and middleware, the work involved updating the maintenance middleware and pre-rendered stubs to ensure that JSON-based API requests receive proper HTTP 503 responses instead of being redirected or served HTML templates. Integration testing was added to validate this behavior, confirming that API clients consistently receive expected responses during downtime. Using PHP and leveraging skills in API design and integration testing, this effort improved the framework’s resilience and provided a more predictable experience for API consumers during maintenance windows.