How to set up a workflow in Vagrant?

Question

PHP

I have always worked in two modes: without a local server at all (immediately via sftp on the hosting) or I set up a local LAMP / WAMP. Recently I bought a clean iMac and I'm already thinking: is it worth clogging the already weak hardware with the next php, python, redis, mysql, mongo through brew or isolating all this into a virtual machine. I have never used Vagrant (only VirtualBox). Help answering a few noob questions regarding development:

1. Will they use their own image for each project, or, say, can you create an image with all possible utilities, subds and others and store all your projects in it?
   
2. I use PHPShorm and don't quite understand how to make friends with a virtual machine. Indeed, in the IDE settings, you can specify the path to PHP, Git, Pear, Pecl, shared libraries like PhpUnit, composer. All sorts of npm packages, debugging and others. If all this is hidden behind a virtual machine and controlled only through the command line, does the IDE turn into a regular text editor? Or will the OS also have to put all this?
   
3. Vagrant contains project files inside and is synchronized with the poppy folder, or is it better to mount this folder?
   
4. Is it better to configure the deployment (as well as git) of the project from within the image, or is this task a separate one and you can work with the files of the main OS folder (well, except for the database)? I just can't understand what functions the virtual machine should perform, and which separately
   
5. Would it be better for home development instead of vagrant to take an inexpensive VDS and install everything and store all projects there? Do they do that?
   

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

1. separate images. because it may require a different version of the software, other settings and all that.
2. https://www.jetbrains.com/help/phpstorm/configurin...
3. the project lives on a poppy, it is automatically mounted in a vagrant. for this reason, git and some other tools are more convenient to have on the host. although, if desired, of course, you can keep everything in a virtual machine, but this is less convenient.
4. see item 3
5. do. but I don't see any point in that.