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I know the difference between include and require by reading at following link;
Require VS Include
But if there are PHP files;

  1. dbconenction.php (which has all the database related code)
  2. index.php (which has form and dbconenction.php is include in it to fetch some information from database.
  3. funtions.php (which has all the custom functions which also has the dbconenction.php include or require because in some functions there are queries)
  4. site.php (which has all the site setting fetching from database and dbconenction.php is include or require in it)
  5. config.php (a file which has some manually added variables)
  6. email-functions.php (a file which has email templates and send email functions and dbconenction.php and class.phpmailer.phpis include or require in it)
  7. class.phpmailer.php
  8. process.php (where i process the form, variables, functions and send email)

So in process.php i have to include or require all files like dbconenction.php, funtions.php, config.php, email-functions and class.phpmailer.php.

My Questions;

  1. If dbconenction.php already exist in other PHP included or required files do i really need to include or require it in process.php?
  2. If I don't include class.phpmailer.php in email-functions.php then which file comes first in process.php? class.phpmailer.php Or email-functions.php
  3. And If I dont include or require dbconenction.php in any of above file beside index.php and process.php then which files comes first and which next to it incase if one PHP file variable is dependent on other PHP file;

Reason I'm asking because I develop multiple sites in php with total custom solutions but this PHP file structure always bother me and in somecases one site PHP file structure just won't work in other site at all, sometime even no error just stuck me on blank page.

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Shehary
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3 Answers3

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As a general rule-of-thumb, I almost always use require - include will allow that blank page without errors that you talk about (Speaking of which, ini_set("display_errors", "On"); error_reporting(-1); should help you with that, in the future)

But to further elaborate on your questions:

1). With dbconnection.php - you would be better off using require_once - it sounds like (since you develop multiple websites with different needs, etc) - that using require_once for this would be most suitable - since that way you don't have to worry about where you require it - it will only get loaded once, even if you require it multiple times - Granted, you should probably go with the init.php route - where that one file does all your configurations and includes - which will keep your code cleaner over time...

2). It depends! if class.phpmailer.php does nothing but define a class - and if email-functions.php only defines functions, then it really doesn't matter which one gets included first, so long as they are both included by the time an email-function gets called - Otherwise, if email-function.php immediately does work with class.phpmailer.php - then you'll need to include that class, first -

3). I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH: YOU SHOULD NOT PASS VARIABLES BETWEEN PHP FILES - YOU SHOULD AVOID GLOBAL VARIABLES - But, if you're using require_once or include_once - then you're mostly safe...

Definitely look into MVC and MVC frameworks - and learn how to program Object-Oriented - - - it will save you a lot of time, hassle, hear-tearing and heartache over time in maintaining your projects - not to mention it'll help you not have to worry about these questions you've asked, here -

There's a pretty minimal one called 'php-login' - or, looks like it's called "Huge" now - that can get you off to a pretty simple start on how to do these sorts of things more methodically/structured/organized -

http://www.php-login.net/

Good luck!~

rm-vanda
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0

You can have an init.php that have all includes that you need.

Read more: MVC

Glorfindel
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Fabio Cardoso
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  • yes but if I have session files and other files which not be needed much, i cant put all of them in one `init.php` and including or require all of the files where even they won't be needed. – Shehary Jul 13 '15 at 15:25
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Don't do any of these things, use an auto-loader http://php.net/manual/en/language.oop5.autoload.php.

Or even better, use a proper framework like Symfony http://symfony.com. I haven't had to think about such things for a long time. Keep up with the latest greatest techniques and save yourself the hassle of dealing with this sort of tediousness.

Read this http://webdeveloper.gdemolished.com/stop-building-shitty-php-web-applications/

Halfstop
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