PHP file() Function
Definition and Usage
The file() function reads the entire file into an array.
With file_get_contents() Similarly, the difference is that the file() function returns the file as an array. Each element of the array is a line from the file, including the newline character.
If the operation fails, it returns false.
Syntax
file(path,include_path,context)
| Parameters | Description |
|---|---|
| path | Required. Specifies the file to be read. |
| include_path | Optional. If you also want to search for files in the include_path, you can set this parameter to "1". |
| context |
Optional. Specifies the environment for the file handle. context is a set of options that can modify the behavior of the stream. If null is used, it is ignored. |
Description
on context support was added in PHP 5.0.0.
Each line in the returned array includes a line ending, so if you do not need line endings, you also need to use the rtrim() function.
Tips and Comments
Note:Starting from PHP 4.3.0, it can be used file_get_contents() to read the file into a string and return it.
Note:Starting from PHP 4.3.0, the file() function can be used safely for binary files.
Note:If PHP cannot recognize the line endings of Macintosh files when reading files, you can activate the auto_detect_line_endings runtime configuration option.
Example
<?php
print_r(file("test.txt"));
?>
Output:
Array ( [0] => Hello World. Testing testing! [1] => Another day, another line. [2] => If the array picks up this line, [3] => then is it a pickup line? )
