For nested functions:
This is probably obvious to most people, but global always refers to the variable in the global (top level) variable of that name, not just a variable in a higher-level scope. So this will not work:
<?php
// $var1 is not declared in the global scope
function a($var1){
function b(){
global $var1;
echo $var1; // there is no var1 in the global scope so nothing to echo
}
b();
}
a('hello');
?>
変数のスコープ
変数のスコープは、その変数が定義されたコンテキストです。ほとんどの PHP 変数は、スコープを1つだけ有しています。このスコープの範囲は、 includeやrequireにより読みこまれたファイルも含みます。例えば、
<?php
$a = 1;
include 'b.inc';
?>
この例で、変数$aはインクルードされた b.inc スクリプトの中でも利用可能です。しかし、 ユーザー定義の関数の中では変数の有効範囲はローカル関数の中となりま す。関数の中で使用された変数はデフォルトで有効範囲が関数内部に制限 されます。例えば、
<?php
$a = 1; /* グローバルスコープ */
function test()
{
echo $a; /* ローカルスコープ変数の参照 */
}
test();
?>
このスクリプトは、出力を全く行いません。これは、echo 命令がローカ ル版の $a 変数を参照しているにもかかわらず、こ のスコープでは値が代入されていないからです。この動作は、特にローカ ルな定義で上書きしない限りグローバル変数が自動的に関数で使用可能で ある C 言語と少々異なっていると気がつかれるかもしれません。C言語の ような場合、グローバル変数を不注意で変更してしまうという問題を生じ る可能性があります。PHP では、グローバル変数は、関数の内部で使用す る場合、関数の内部でグローバルとして宣言する必要があります。
global キーワード
まず、globalの使用例を示します。
例1 global の使用
<?php
$a = 1;
$b = 2;
function Sum()
{
global $a, $b;
$b = $a + $b;
}
Sum();
echo $b;
?>
上のスクリプトは、3 を出力します。関数の内部で $a、$b をグローバル宣言を行うことにより、両変数への参照は、グローバル変数 の方を参照することになります。ある関数により操作できるグローバル変 数の数は無制限です。
グローバルスコープから変数をアクセスする2番目の方法は、PHPが定義す る配列$GLOBALSを使用することです。先の例は、次 のように書き換えることができます。
例2 globalのかわりに$GLOBALSを使用する
<?php
$a = 1;
$b = 2;
function Sum()
{
$GLOBALS['b'] = $GLOBALS['a'] + $GLOBALS['b'];
}
Sum();
echo $b;
?>
配列$GLOBALSは連想配列であり、グローバル変数の 名前がキー、その変数の内容が配列要素の値となっています。 $GLOBALS は スーパーグローバル であるため、$GLOBALSは全てのスコープに存在します。 以下にスーパーグローバルの効果を示す例を示します。
例3 スーパーグローバルとスコープの例
<?php
function test_global()
{
// ほとんどの定義済み変数は"スーパー"ではなく、関数内の
// ローカルスコープで有効とするには'global'をコールする必要があります。
global $HTTP_POST_VARS;
echo $HTTP_POST_VARS['name'];
// スーパーグローバルはどのスコープでも有効であり
// 'global'をコールする必要がありません。
// スーパーグローバルはPHP4.1.0以降で利用できます。
// HTTP_POST_VARS は今や非推奨とされています。
echo $_POST['name'];
}
?>
注意:
global キーワードを関数の外部で使ってもエラーにはなりません。 そのファイルが関数の内部からインクルードされたときに使うことができます。
静的変数の使用
変数のスコープに関する別の重要な機能は、静的 (static) 変数です。静的変数はローカル関数スコープのみに 存在しますが、プログラム実行がこのスコープの外で行われるようになっ てもその値を失わないません。次の例を見てください。
例4 静的変数が必要な場面の例
<?php
function test()
{
$a = 0;
echo $a;
$a++;
}
?>
この関数は、コールされる度に$aを 0にセットし、0 を出力するのでほとん ど役にたちません。変数を1増やす $a++ は、関数から外に出ると変数 $aが消えてしまうために目的を達成しません。現在 のカウントの追跡ができるようにカウント関数を使用できるようにするた めには、変数$aをstaticとして宣言します。
例5 静的変数の使用例
<?php
function test()
{
static $a = 0;
echo $a;
$a++;
}
?>
こうすると、$a は関数が最初にコールされたときにのみ初期化され、 test() 関数がコールされるたびに $a の値を出力してその値を増加させます。
static変数は、再帰関数を実現する1つの手段としても使用されます。再帰 関数は、自分自身をコールする関数です。再帰関数を書くときには、無限 に再帰を行う可能性があるため、注意する必要があります。適当な方法に より再帰を確実に終了させる必要があります。次の簡単な関数は、中止す るタイミングを知るためにstatic変数$countを用いて、 10 回まで再帰を行います。
例6 再帰関数での静的変数の使用
<?php
function test()
{
static $count = 0;
$count++;
echo $count;
if ($count < 10) {
test();
}
$count--;
}
?>
注意:
静的変数は、上の例に見られるような方法で宣言されます。 式の結果を静的変数に代入しようとすると、パースエラーが 発生します。
例7 静的変数の宣言
<?php
function foo(){
static $int = 0; // 正しい
static $int = 1+2; // 間違い(式を代入しています)
static $int = sqrt(121); // 間違い(同じく式を代入しています)
$int++;
echo $int;
}
?>
注意:
静的な宣言は、コンパイル時に解決されます。
注意:
global キーワードを関数の外部で使ってもエラーにはなりません。 そのファイルが関数の内部からインクルードされたときに使うことができます。
グローバル変数と静的変数のリファレンス
PHP4を駆動するZend Engine 1では、 リファレンス変数の修正子 static および global を実装しています。 例えば、関数スコープ内にglobal 命令により実際にインポートされた真のグローバル変数は、 実際にグローバル変数へのリファレンスを作成します。 これにより、以下の例が示すように予測できない動作を引き起こす可能性 があります。
<?php
function test_global_ref() {
global $obj;
$obj = &new stdclass;
}
function test_global_noref() {
global $obj;
$obj = new stdclass;
}
test_global_ref();
var_dump($obj);
test_global_noref();
var_dump($obj);
?>
上の例の出力は以下となります。
NULL
object(stdClass)(0) {
}
類似の動作がstatic命令にも適用されます。 リファレンスは静的に保存することができません。
<?php
function &get_instance_ref() {
static $obj;
echo 'Static object: ';
var_dump($obj);
if (!isset($obj)) {
// Assign a reference to the static variable
$obj = &new stdclass;
}
$obj->property++;
return $obj;
}
function &get_instance_noref() {
static $obj;
echo 'Static object: ';
var_dump($obj);
if (!isset($obj)) {
// Assign the object to the static variable
$obj = new stdclass;
}
$obj->property++;
return $obj;
}
$obj1 = get_instance_ref();
$still_obj1 = get_instance_ref();
echo "\n";
$obj2 = get_instance_noref();
$still_obj2 = get_instance_noref();
?>
この例を実行すると以下の出力となります。
Static object: NULL
Static object: NULL
Static object: NULL
Static object: object(stdClass)(1) {
["property"]=>
int(1)
}
この例は、static変数にリファレンスを代入した時に &get_instance_ref()関数を2回目に コールした際に保持されていないことを示しています。
Some interesting behavior (tested with PHP5), using the static-scope-keyword inside of class-methods.
<?php
class sample_class
{
public function func_having_static_var($x = NULL)
{
static $var = 0;
if ($x === NULL)
{ return $var; }
$var = $x;
}
}
$a = new sample_class();
$b = new sample_class();
echo $a->func_having_static_var()."\n";
echo $b->func_having_static_var()."\n";
// this will output (as expected):
// 0
// 0
$a->func_having_static_var(3);
echo $a->func_having_static_var()."\n";
echo $b->func_having_static_var()."\n";
// this will output:
// 3
// 3
// maybe you expected:
// 3
// 0
?>
One could expect "3 0" to be outputted, as you might think that $a->func_having_static_var(3); only alters the value of the static $var of the function "in" $a - but as the name says, these are class-methods. Having an object is just a collection of properties, the functions remain at the class. So if you declare a variable as static inside a function, it's static for the whole class and all of its instances, not for each object.
Maybe it's senseless to post that.. cause if you want to have the behaviour that I expected, you can simply use a variable of the object itself:
<?php
class sample_class
{ protected $var = 0;
function func($x = NULL)
{ $this->var = $x; }
} ?>
I believe that all normal-thinking people would never even try to make this work with the static-keyword, for those who try (like me), this note maybe helpfull.
I was struggling forever to figure this out and finally tried the $GLOBALS["filename"] = $filename approach, and it worked for me.
This happens on one of my machines, on which I installed Zend AMF a few months before my most recent machine. The globals worked fine when calling the PHP script directly from a browser, but when I called the function from my Flash project, which uses Zend AMF to interface with the PHP script, I was seeing this problem, but it was fixed using this approach.
Sometimes a variable available in global scope is not accessible via the 'global' keyword or the $GLOBALS superglobal array. I have not been able to replicate it in original code, but it occurs when a script is run under PHPUnit.
PHPUnit provides a variable "$filename" that reflects the name of the file loaded on its command line. This is available in global scope, but not in object scope. For example, the following phpUnit script (call it GlobalScope.php):
<?php
print "Global scope FILENAME [$filename]\n";
class MyTestClass extends PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase {
function testMyTest() {
global $filename;
print "Method scope global FILENAME [$filename]\n";
print "Method scope GLOBALS[FILENAME] [".$GLOBALS["filename"]."]\n";
}
}
?>
If you run this script via "phpunit GlobalScope.php", you will get:
Global scope FILENAME [/home/ktyler/GlobalScope.php]
PHPUnit 3.4.5 by Sebastian Bergmann.
Method scope global FILENAME []
Method scope GLOBALS[FILENAME] []
.
You have to -- strange as it seems -- do the following:
<?php
$GLOBALS["filename"]=$filename;
print "Global scope FILENAME [$filename]\n";
class MyTestClass extends PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase {
function testMyTest() {
global $filename;
print "Method scope global FILENAME [$filename]\n";
print "Method scope GLOBALS[FILENAME] [".$GLOBALS["filename"]."]\n";
}
}
?>
By doing this, both "global" and $GLOBALS work!
I don't know what it is that PHPUnit does (I know it uses Reflection) that causes a globally available variable to be implicitly unavailable via "global" or $GLOBALS. But there it is.
Useful function:
<?php
function cycle($a, $b, $i=0) {
static $switches = array();
if (isset($switches[$i])) $switches[$i] = !$switches[$i]; else !$switches[$i] = true;
return ($switches[$i])?$a:$b;
}
?>
Exeample
<?php
for ($i = 1; $i<3; $i++) {
echo $i.cycle('a', 'b').PHP_EOL;
for ($j = 1; $j<5; $j++) {
echo ' '.$j.cycle('a', 'b', 1).PHP_EOL;
for ($k = 1; $k<3; $k++) {
echo ' '.$k.cycle('c', 'd', 2).PHP_EOL;
}
}
}
/**
Output:
1a
1a
1c
2d
2b
1c
2d
3a
1c
2d
4b
1c
2d
2b
1a
1c
2d
2b
1c
2d
3a
1c
2d
4b
1c
2d
*/
?>
I was pondering a little something regarding caching classes within a function in order to prevent the need to initiate them multiple times and not clutter the caching function's class properties with more values.
I came here because I remembered something about references being lost. So I made a test to see if I could pull what I wanted to off anyway. Here's and example of how to get around the references lost issue. I hope it is helpful to someone else!
<?php
class test1{}
class test2{}
class test3{}
function cache( $class )
{
static $loaders = array();
$loaders[ $class ] = new $class();
var_dump( $loaders );
}
print '<pre>';
cache( 'test1' );
cache( 'test2' );
cache( 'test3' );
?>
Can not access to global variables from destructor, if obj is not unseted at the end:
<?php
class A
{
function __destruct()
{
global $g_Obj;
echo "<br>#step 2: ";
var_dump($g_Obj);
}
function start()
{
global $g_Obj;
echo "<br>#step 1: ";
var_dump($g_Obj);
}
};
$g_Obj = new A(); // start here
$g_Obj->start();
$g_Obj = NULL; // !!! comment line and result will changed !!!
?>
Result, if line is not commented:
#step 1: object(A)#1 (0) { }
#step 2: object(A)#1 (0) { }
Result, if line is commented:
#step 1: object(A)#1 (0) { }
#step 2: NULL
Not sure of the implications of this but...
You can create nested functions within functions but you must make sure they aren't defined twice, e.g.:
<?php
function norm($a, $b) {
static $first_time = true;
if ($first_time) {
function square($x) {
return $x * $x;
}
$first_time = false;
}
return sqrt(square($a) + square($b));
}
print square(5); // error, not defined yet
print norm(5,4);
print "<br>";
print norm(3,2);
print square(5); // OK
?>
If you don't include the if ($first_time) you get an error saying you can't define square() twice. Note that square is not local to the function it just appears there. The last line successfully accesses square in the page scope. This is not terribly useful, but interesting.
Please note for using global variable in child functions:
This won't work correctly...
<?php
function foo(){
$f_a = 'a';
function bar(){
global $f_a;
echo '"f_a" in BAR is: ' . $f_a . '<br />'; // doesn't work, var is empty!
}
bar();
echo '"f_a" in FOO is: ' . $f_a . '<br />';
}
?>
This will...
<?php
function foo(){
global $f_a; // <- Notice to this
$f_a = 'a';
function bar(){
global $f_a;
echo '"f_a" in BAR is: ' . $f_a . '<br />'; // work!, var is 'a'
}
bar();
echo '"f_a" in FOO is: ' . $f_a . '<br />';
}
?>
If you use __autoload function to load classes' definitons, beware that "static local variables are resolved at compile time" (whatever it really means) and the order in which autoloads occur may impact the semantic.
For example if you have:
<?php
class Singleton{
static public function get_instance(){
static $instance = null;
if($instance === null){
$instance = new static();
}
return $instance;
}
}
?>
and two separate files A.php and B.php:
class A extends Singleton{}
class B extends A{}
then depending on the order in which you access those two classes, and consequently, the order in which __autoload includes them, you can get strange results of calling B::get_instance() and A::get_instance().
It seems that static local variables are alocated in as many copies as there are classes that inherit a method at the time of inclusion of parsing Singleton.
Becareful where you define your global variables:
This will work:
<?php
$MyArray = array("Dog");
function SeeArray(){
global $MyArray;
if (in_array("Dog",$MyArray)){
foreach ($MyArray as $Element){
echo "$Element <hr/>";
}
}
}
SeeArray();
?>
while this will not:
<?php
SeeArray();
$MyArray = array("Dog");
function SeeArray(){
global $MyArray;
if (in_array("Dog",$MyArray)){ // an error will generate here
foreach ($MyArray as $Element){
echo "$Element <hr/>";
}
}
}
?>
On confusing aspect about global scope...
If you want to access a variable such as a cookie inside a function, but theres a chance it may not even be defined, you need to access it using he GLOBALS array, not by defining it as global.
This wont work correctly....
<?php
function isLoggedin()
{
global $cookie_username;
if (isset($cookie_username)
echo "blah..";
}
?>
This will..
<?php
function isLoggedin()
{
if (isset($GLOBALS["cookie_username"]))
echo "blah..";
}
?>
Like functions, if you declare a variable in a class, then set it as global in that class, its value will not be retained outside of that class either.
<?php
class global_reference
{
public $val;
public function __construct () {
global $var;
$this->val = $var;
}
public function dump_it ()
{
debug_zval_dump($this->val);
}
public function type_cast ()
{
$this->val = (int) $this->val;
}
}
$var = "x";
$obj = new global_reference();
$obj->dump_it();
$obj->type_cast();
echo "after change ";
$obj->dump_it();
echo "original $var\n";
?>
The work-around is of course changing the assignment in the constructor to a reference assignment as such:
<?php
//....
$this->val = &var;
//....
?>
If the global you're setting is an object then no reference is necessary because of the way PHP deals with objects. If you don't want to reference to the same object however you can use the clone keyword.
<?php
//...
global $Obj;
$this->obj_copy = clone $Obj;
//...
?>
[EDIT BY danbrown AT php DOT net: Merged all thoughts and notes by this author into a single note.]
assign after static variable declare:
<?php
function test() {
static $local_var=0;
$local_var=9;
echo $local_var++;
}
test();
test();
?>
output:
99
<?php
function test() {
static $local_var=0;
$local_var+=3;
echo $local_var++;
}
test();
test();
?>
output:
37
It will be obvious for most of you: changing value of a static in one instance changes value in all instances.
<?php
class example {
public static $s = 'unchanged';
public function set() {
$this::$s = 'changed';
}
}
$o = new example;
$p = new example;
$o->set();
print "$o static: {$o::$i}\n$p static: {$p::$i}";
?>
Output will be:
$o static: changed
$p static: changed
Note that unlike Java and C++, variables declared inside blocks such as loops or if's, will also be recognized and accessible outside of the block, so:
<?php
for($j=0; $j<3; $j++)
{
if($j == 1)
$a = 4;
}
echo $a;
?>
Would print 4.
If you include a file from within a function using include(), the included file inherits the function scope as its own global scope, it will not be able to see top level globals unless they are explicit in the function.
<?php
$foo = "bar";
function baz() {
global $foo; # NOTE THIS
include("qux");
}
?>
PHP 5.1.4 doesn't seem to care about the static keyword. It doesn't let you use $this in a static method, but you can call class methods through an instance of the class using regular -> notation. You can also call instance methods as class methods through the class itself. The documentiation here is plain wrong.
<?php
class Foo {
public static function static_fun()
{
return "This is a class method!\n";
}
public function not_static_fun()
{
return "This is an instance method!\n";
}
}
echo '<pre>';
echo "From Foo:\n";
echo Foo::static_fun();
echo Foo::not_static_fun();
echo "\n";
echo "From \$foo = new Foo():\n";
$foo = new Foo();
echo $foo->static_fun();
echo $foo->not_static_fun();
echo '</pre>';
?>
You'll see the following output:
From Foo:
This is a class method!
This is an instance method!
From $foo = new Foo():
This is a class method!
This is an instance method!
Pay attention while unsetting variables inside functions:
<?php
$a = "1234";
echo "<pre>";
echo "outer: $a\n";
function testa()
{
global $a;
echo " inner testa: $a\n";
unset ($a);
echo " inner testa: $a\n";
}
function testb()
{
global $a;
echo " inner testb: $a\n";
$a = null;
echo " inner testb: $a\n";
}
testa();
echo "outer: $a\n";
testb();
echo "outer: $a\n";
echo "</pre>";
?>
/***** Result:
outer: 1234
inner testa: 1234
inner testa:
outer: 1234
inner testb: 1234
inner testb:
outer:
******/
Took me 1 hour to find out why my variable was still there after unsetting it ...
Thomas Candrian
Be carefull about nested functions :
<?php
// won't work :
function foo1()
{
$who = "world";
function bar1()
{
global $who;
echo "Hello $who";
}
}
// will work :
function foo2()
{
$GLOBALS['who'] = "world";
function bar2()
{
global $who;
echo "Hello $who";
}
}
// also note, of course :
function foo3()
{
$GLOBALS['who'] = "world";
// won't work
echo "Hello $who";
// will work
global $who;
echo "Hello $who";
}
?>
WARNING! If you create a local variable in a function and then within that function assign it to a global variable by reference the object will be destroyed when the function exits and the global var will contain NOTHING! This main sound obvious but it can be quite tricky you have a large script (like a phpgtk-based gui app ;-) ).
example:
<?php
function foo ()
{
global $testvar;
$localvar = new Object ();
$testvar = &$localvar;
}
foo ();
print_r ($testvar); // produces NOTHING!!!!
?>
hope this helps someone before they lose all their hair
I had code not too unlike this:
<?php
function foo() {
static $s = 0;
if ($s == 0) {
echo 'setting $s to "foo"<br>';
$s = "foo";
}
}
// a little test
foo();
foo();
foo();
?>
Which prints 'setting $s to "foo"' three times.
The code needs to be:
<?php
function foo() {
static $s = '';
if ($s == '') {
echo 'setting $s to "foo"<br>';
$s = "foo";
}
}
?>
There're times when global variables comes in handy, like universal read only resources you just need to create once in your application and share to the rest of your scripts. But it may become quite hard to track with "variables".
Another way of working with a large ammount of global variables could be the following.
<?php
$var = "3";
$smarty = new Smarty();
function headers_set_404() {
extract($globals);
echo $var . "<br />";
print_r($smarty);
return;
}
?>
Regards,
Droope
Use the superglobal array $GLOBALS is faster than the global keyword. See:
<?php
//Using the keyword global
$a=1;
$b=2;
function sum() {
global $a, $b;
$a += $b;
}
$t = microtime(true);
for($i=0; $i<1000; $i++) {
sum();
}
echo microtime(true)-$t;
echo " -- ".$a."<br>";
//Using the superglobal array
$a=1;
$b=2;
function sum2() {
$GLOBALS['a'] += $GLOBALS['b'];
}
$t = microtime(true);
for($i=0; $i<1000; $i++) {
sum2();
}
echo microtime(true)-$t;
echo " -- ".$a."<br>";
?>
Many Times Globality of variables will be the small issue, after long time I decided to use super globals.
Super globals exists any where:
$_SERVER, $_GET, $_POST .....
Now for example:
<?php
$foo[] = range(0, 3);
$_POST['foo'] = $foo;
a(); //no parameters needed.
b();
$foo = $_POST['foo'];
Print_r($foo);
/* out
Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[0] => 0
[1] => 1
[2] => 2
[3] => 3
)
[1] => Array
(
[0] => 4
[1] => 5
[2] => 6
[3] => 7
)
[2] => Array
(
[0] => 8
[1] => 9
[2] => 10
)
)
*/
function a(){
$_POST['foo'][] = range(4, 7);
}
function b(){
$_POST['foo'][] = range(8, 10);
}
?>
Note: the key must not be passed by the page via _POST method by the form, else the value will be over written
If you are used to include files which declare global variables, and if you now need to include these files in a function, you will see that those globals are declared in the function's scope and so they will be lost at the end of the function.
You may use something like this to solve this problem:
main_file.php :
<?php
//Some innocent variables which exist before the problem
$a = 42;
$b = 33;
$c = 56;
function some_function() {
//Some variables that we don't want out of the function
$saucisse = "saucisse";
$jambon = "jambon";
//Let's include another file
$evalt = "require_once 'anothertest_include.php';";
$before_eval_vars = get_defined_vars();
eval($evalt);
//Let's extract the variables that were defined AFTER the call to 'eval'
$function_variable_names = array("function_variable_names" => 0, "before_eval_vars" => 0, "created" => 0);
//We can generate a list of the newly created variables by substracting the list of the variables of the function and the list of the variables which existed before the call to the list of current variables at this point
$created = array_diff_key(get_defined_vars(), $GLOBALS, $function_variable_names, $before_eval_vars);
//Now we globalize them
foreach ($created as $created_name => $on_sen_fiche)
global $$created_name;
//And we affect them
extract($created);
}
some_function();
print_r(get_defined_vars());
?>
included_file.php :
<?php
//Some variables that we want in the global scope of main_file.php
$included_var_one = 123;
$included_var_two = 465;
$included_var_three = 789;
?>
External variables in a function
I needed to access dynamically-created variables from an included file within a helper function. Because the list of $path_* variables I needed to access from the other file is itself dynamic, I didn't want to have to declare all possible variables within the function, and I was concerned at the overhead of declaring =all= members of $GLOBALS[] as global. However the following code worked for me:
<?php
function makePath($root, $atom) {
$pos = strrpos($atom, '/');
if ($pos === false) {
global ${'path_'.$atom};
$path = ${'path_'.$atom};
}
else {
global ${'path_'.substr($atom, 0, $pos)};
$path = ${'path_'.substr($atom, 0, $pos)};
}
if ($path)
return ($pos === false)
? $root.$path
: $root.$path.substr($atom, $pos + 1);
else
return NULL;
}
?>
Regards,
::Leigh
Took me longer than I expected to figure this out, and thought others might find it useful.
I created a function (safeinclude), which I use to include files; it does processing before the file is actually included (determine full path, check it exists, etc).
Problem: Because the include was occurring inside the function, all of the variables inside the included file were inheriting the variable scope of the function; since the included files may or may not require global variables that are declared else where, it creates a problem.
Most places (including here) seem to address this issue by something such as:
<?php
//declare this before include
global $myVar;
//or declare this inside the include file
$nowglobal = $GLOBALS['myVar'];
?>
But, to make this work in this situation (where a standard PHP file is included within a function, being called from another PHP script; where it is important to have access to whatever global variables there may be)... it is not practical to employ the above method for EVERY variable in every PHP file being included by 'safeinclude', nor is it practical to staticly name every possible variable in the "global $this" approach. (namely because the code is modulized, and 'safeinclude' is meant to be generic)
My solution: Thus, to make all my global variables available to the files included with my safeinclude function, I had to add the following code to my safeinclude function (before variables are used or file is included)
<?php
foreach ($GLOBALS as $key => $val) { global $$key; }
?>
Thus, complete code looks something like the following (very basic model):
<?php
function safeinclude($filename)
{
//This line takes all the global variables, and sets their scope within the function:
foreach ($GLOBALS as $key => $val) { global $$key; }
/* Pre-Processing here: validate filename input, determine full path
of file, check that file exists, etc. This is obviously not
necessary, but steps I found useful. */
if ($exists==true) { include("$file"); }
return $exists;
}
?>
In the above, 'exists' & 'file' are determined in the pre-processing. File is the full server path to the file, and exists is set to true if the file exists. This basic model can be expanded of course. In my own, I added additional optional parameters so that I can call safeinclude to see if a file exists without actually including it (to take advantage of my path/etc preprocessing, verses just calling the file exists function).
Pretty simple approach that I could not find anywhere online; only other approach I could find was using PHP's eval().
Note that if you declare a variable in a function, then set it as global in that function, its value will not be retained outside of that function. This was tripping me up for a while so I thought it would be worth noting.
<?PHP
foo();
echo $a; // echoes nothing
bar();
echo $b; //echoes "b";
function foo() {
$a = "a";
global $a;
}
function bar() {
global $b;
$b = "b";
}
?>
<?php
/*
VARIABLE SCOPE : GLOBAL V/S STATIC
If variable $count is defined global as under, instead of static, it does not work well as desired in repeated function calls.
$count = 1; //if not defined STATIC, in each function call, it starts countig from one to 25.
global $count;
which gives folowing output:
0123456789101112131415161718192021222324
Total 24 numbers are printed.
So far 26 function call(s) made.
26272829303132333435363738394041424344454647484950
Total 50 numbers are printed.
So far 52 function call(s) made.
*/
function print_1to50()
{
// $count = 1;
// global $count;
static $count=1; // Initial assigment of One to $count, static declarion holds the last(previous) value of variable $count in each next function calls.
$limit = $count+24;
while($count<=$limit)
{
echo "$count";
$count=$count+1;
}
$num_count= $count-1;
echo "<br>\n". "Total $num_count numbers are printed.<br>";
return; // return statement without parenthesis()or arguments denotes end of a function rather than returning any values to subsequent function call(s).
} // end of while loop
$count=0;
print_1to50();
$count=$count+1;
print "So far $count function call(s) made.<br><br>";
print_1to50();
$count=$count+1;
print "So far $count function call(s) made.<br>";
/*
Which gives following output:
12345678910111213141516171819202122232425
Now I have printed 25 numbers.
I have made 1 function call(s).
26272829303132333435363738394041424344454647484950
Now I have printed 50 numbers.
I have made 2 function call(s).
*/
?>
Using the global keyword inside a function to define a variable is essentially the same as passing the variable by reference as a parameter:
<?php
somefunction(){
global $var;
}
?>
is the same as:
<?php
somefunction(& $a) {
}
?>
The advantage to using the keyword is if you have a long list of variables needed by the function - you dont have to pass them every time you call the function.
About more complex situation using global variables..
Let's say we have two files:
a.php
<?php
function a() {
include("b.php");
}
a();
?>
b.php
<?php
$b = "something";
function b() {
global $b;
$b = "something new";
}
b();
echo $b;
?>
You could expect that this script will return "something new" but no, it will return "something". To make it working properly, you must add global keyword in $b definition, in above example it will be:
global $b;
$b = "something";
If you want to access a table row using $GLOBALS, you must do it outside string delimiters or using curl braces :
<?php
$siteParams["siteName"] = "myweb";
function foo() {
$table = $GLOBALS["siteParams"]["siteName"]."articles"; // OK
echo $table; // output "mywebarticles"
$table = "{$GLOBALS["siteParams"]["siteName"]}articles"; // OK
echo $table; // output "mywebarticles"
$table = "$GLOBALS[siteParams][siteName]articles"; // Not OK
echo $table; // output "Array[siteName]article"
$result = mysql_query("UPDATE $table ...");
}
?>
Or use global :
<?php
function foo() {
global $siteParams;
$table = "$siteParams[siteName]articles"; // OK
echo $table; // output "mywebarticles"
$result = mysql_query("UPDATE $table ...");
}
?>
Sometimes in PHP 4 you need static variabiles in class. You can do it by referencing static variable in constructor to the class variable:
<?php
class test {
var $var;
var $static_var;
function test()
{
static $s;
$this->static_var =& $s;
}
}
$a=new test();
$a->static_var=4;
$a->var=4;
$b=new test();
echo $b->static_var; //this will output 4
echo $b->var; //this will output nul
?>
Be careful with "require", "require_once" and "include" inside functions. Even if the included file seems to define global variables, they might not be defined as such.
consider those two files:
---index.php------------------------------
<?php
function foo() {
require_once("class_person.inc");
$person= new Person();
echo $person->my_flag; // should be true, but is undefined
}
foo();
?>
---class_person.inc----------------------------
<?php
$seems_global=true;
class Person {
public $my_flag;
public function __construct() {
global $seems_global;
$my_flag= $seems_global
}
}
?>
---------------------------------
The reason for this behavior is quiet obvious, once you figured it out. Sadly this might not be always as easy as in this example. A solution would be to add the line...
<?php global $seems_global; ?>
at the beginning of "class_person.inc". That makes sure you set the global-var.
best regards
tom
ps: bug search time approx. 1 hour.
It should be noted that a static variable inside a method is static across all instances of that class, i.e., all objects of that class share the same static variable. For example the code:
<?php
class test {
function z() {
static $n = 0;
$n++;
return $n;
}
}
$a =& new test();
$b =& new test();
print $a->z(); // prints 1, as it should
print $b->z(); // prints 2 because $a and $b have the same $n
?>
somewhat unexpectedly prints:
1
2
If you need all your global variables available in a function, you can use this:
<?php
function foo() {
extract($GLOBALS);
// here you have all global variables
}
?>
Be careful if your static variable is an array and you return
one of it's elements: Other than a scalar variable, elements
of an array are returned as reference (regardless if you
didn't define them to be returned by reference).
<?php
function incr(&$int) {
return $int++;
}
function return_copyof_scalar() {
static $v;
if (!$v)
$v = 1;
return($v);
}
function return_copyof_arrayelement() {
static $v;
if (!$v) {
$v = array();
$v[0] = 1;
}
return($v[0]);
}
echo "scalar: ".
incr(return_copyof_scalar()).
incr(return_copyof_scalar()).
"\n";
echo "arrayelement: ".
incr(return_copyof_arrayelement()).
incr(return_copyof_arrayelement()).
"\n";
?>
Should print
scalar: 11
arrayelement: 11
but it prints:
scalar: 11
arrayelement: 12
as in the second case the arrays element was returned by
reference. According to a guy from the bug reports the
explanation for this behaviour should be somewhere here in
the documentation (in 'the part with title: "References with
global and static variables"'). Unfortunately I can't find
anything about that here. As the guys from the bug reports
are surely right in every case, maybe there is something
missing in the documentation. Sadly I don't have a good
explanation why this happens, so I decided to document at
least the behaviour.
If you need all your global variables available in a function, you can use this:
<?php
function foo(parameters) {
if(version_compare(phpversion(),"4.3.0")>=0) {
foreach($GLOBALS as $arraykey=>$arrayvalue) {
global $$arraykey;
}
}
// now all global variables are locally available...
}
?>
Some times you need to access the same static in more than one function. There is an easy way to solve this problem:
<?php
// We need a way to get a reference of our static
function &getStatic() {
static $staticVar;
return $staticVar;
}
// Now we can access the static in any method by using it's reference
function fooCount() {
$ref2static = & getStatic();
echo $ref2static++;
}
fooCount(); // 0
fooCount(); // 1
fooCount(); // 2
?>
Static variables do not hold through inheritance. Let class A have a function Z with a static variable. Let class B extend class A in which function Z is not overwritten. Two static variables will be created, one for class A and one for class B.
Look at this example:
<?php
class A {
function Z() {
static $count = 0;
printf("%s: %d\n", get_class($this), ++$count);
}
}
class B extends A {}
$a = new A();
$b = new B();
$a->Z();
$a->Z();
$b->Z();
$a->Z();
?>
This code returns:
A: 1
A: 2
B: 1
A: 3
As you can see, class A and B are using different static variables even though the same function was being used.
More on static variables:
A static variable does not retain it's value after the script's execution. Don't count on it being available from one page request to the next; you'll have to use a database for that.
Second, here's a good pattern to use for declaring a static variable based on some complex logic:
<?php
function buildStaticVariable()
{
$foo = null;
// some complex expression or set of
// expressions/statements to build
// the return variable.
return $foo;
}
function functionWhichUsesStaticVar()
{
static $foo = null;
if($foo === null) $foo = buildStaticVariable();
// the rest of your code goes here.
}
?>
Using such a pattern allows you to separate the code that creates your default static variable value from the function that uses it. Easier to maintain code is good. :)
Whats good for the goose is not always good for the iterative gander. If you declare and initialize the static variable more than once inside a function ie.
<?php
function Test(){
static $count = 0;
static $count = 1;
static $count = 2;
echo $count;
}
?>
the variable will take the value of the last declaration. In this case $count=2.
But! however when you make that function recursive ie.
<?php
function Test(){
static $count = 0;
static $count = 1;
static $count = 2;
$count++;
echo $count;
if ($count<10){
Test();
}
}
?>
Every call to the function Test() is a differenct SCOPE and therefore the static declarations and initializations are NOT executed again. So what Im trying to say is that its OK to declare and initialize a static variable multiple times if you are in one function... but its NOT OK to declare and initialize a static variable multiple times if you call that same function multiple times. In other words the static variable is set once you LEAVE a function (even if you go back into that very same function).
Alright, so you can't set a static variable with a reference.
However, you can set a static variable to an array with an element that is a reference:
<?php
class myReference {
function getOrSet($array = null) {
static $myValue;
if (!$array) {
return $myValue[0]; //Return reference in array
}
$myValue = $array; //Set static variable with array
static $myValue;
}
}
$static = "Dummy";
$dummy = new myReference;
$dummy->getOrSet(array(&$static));
$static = "Test";
print $dummy->getOrSet();
?>
i found out that on any (still not found) reason the <?php static $val =NULL; ?> is not working when trying to extract the data form the $var with a while statment
e.g.:
<?php
funktion get_data() {
static $myarray = null;
if($myarray == NULL) {
//get some info in an array();
$myarray = array('one','two');
}
while(list($key,$val) = each( $myarray ) ) {
// do something
echo "x: $key , y: $val";
}
}
?>
when using foreach($myarray AS $key => $val) { .... instad of while then i see the result!
Even if an included file return a value using return(), it's still sharing the same scope as the caller script!
<?php
$foo = 'aaa';
$bar = include('include.php');
echo($foo.' / '.$bar);
?>
where include.php is
<?php
$foo = 'bbb';
return $foo;
?>
The output is: bbb / bbb
Not: aaa / bbb
It's possible to use a variable variable when specifying a variable as global in a function. That way your function can decide what global variable to access in run-time.
<?php
function func($varname)
{
global $$varname;
echo $$varname;
}
$hello = "hello world!";
func("hello");
?>
This will print "hello world!", and is roughly the same as passing by reference, in the case when the variable you want to pass is global. The advantage over references is that they can't have default parameters. With the method above, you can do the following.
<?php
function func($varname = FALSE)
{
if ($varname === FALSE)
echo "No variable.";
else
{
global $$varname;
echo $$varname;
}
}
$hello = "hello world!";
func("hello"); // prints "hello world!"
func(); // prints "No variable."
?>
Some people (including me) had a problem with defining a long GLOBAL variable list in functions (very error prone). Here is a possible solution. My program parses php file for functions, and compiles GLOBAL variable lists. Then you can just remove from the list those variables which need not be global.
<?php
//parser for GLOBAL variable list
$pfile=file("myfile.php4");
for($i=0;$i<sizeof($pfile);$i++) {
if(eregi("function",$pfile[$i])) {
list($part1,$part2)=sscanf($pfile[$i],"%s %s");
echo "\n\n $part1 $part2:\nGLOBAL ";
$varlist=array();
$level=0; $end=$i;
do {
$lpar=explode("{",$pfile[$end]);
$level+=sizeof($lpar)-1;
$lpar=explode("}",$pfile[$end]);
$level-=sizeof($lpar)-1;
$end++;
} while(($end<sizeof($pfile))&&($level>0));
$pstr="";
for($j=$i;$j<=$end;$j++) $pstr.=$pfile[$j];
$lpar=explode("$",$pstr);
for($j=1;$j<sizeof($lpar);$j++) {
eregi('[a-zA-Z_][a-zA-Z0-9_]*',$lpar[$j],$cvar);
$varlist[$cvar[0]]=1;
}
array_walk($varlist,'var_print');
}
}
function var_print ($item, $key) {
echo "$key,";
}
?>
Seems as though when a cookie is saved and referenced as a variable of the same name as the cookie, that variable is NOT global. If you make a function ro read the value of the cookie, the cooke variable name must be declared as a global.
example:
<?php
function ReturnCookie()
{
$cookieName = "Test_Cookie";
global $$cookieName;
if (isset($$cookieName))
{
echo ("$cookieName is set");
$returnvalue = $$cookieName;
}
else
{
$newCookieValue = "Test Value";
setcookie("$cookieName","$newCookieValue", (time() + 3153600));
echo ("made a cookie:" . $newCookieValue ."<BR>");
$returnvalue = $newCookieValue;
}
echo ("the cookie that was set is now $returnvalue <BR>");
return $returnvalue;
}
?>
Please don't forget:
values of included (or required) file variables are NOT available in the local script if the included file resides on a remote server:
remotefile.php:
<?PHP
$paramVal=10;
?>
localfile.php:
<?PHP
include "http://example.com/remotefile.php";
echo "remote-value= $paramVal";
?>
Will not work (!!)
I'm using PHP 4.1.1
While designing a database access class, I needed a static variable that will be incremented for all instances of the class each time the class connected to the database. The obvious solution was to declare a "connection" class variable with static scope. Unfortunatly, php doesn't allow such a declaration.
So I went back to defining a static variable in the connect method of my class. But it seems that the static scope is not inherited: if class "a" inherit the "db access" class, then the "connection" variable is shared among "a" instances, not among both "a" AND "db access" instances.
Solution is to declare the static variable out of the db access class, and declare "global" said variable in the connect method.
When defining static variables you may use such declarations:
<?php
static $var = 1; //numbers
static $var = 'strings';
static $var = array(1,'a',3); //array construct
?>
but these ones would produce errors:
<?php
static $var = some_function('arg');
static $var = (some_function('arg'));
static $var = 2+3; //any expression
static $var = new object;
?>
You can use the global function to use variables in classes when included. This means you can have a file such as "MainSettings.php" (Similar to MediaWiki's localsettings) with DB info, etc.
<?php
require("MainSettings.php");
class Foo {
function Bar() {
global $testVariable;
return $testVariable;
}
}
?>
MainSettings.php:
<?php
$testVariable = "This works!";
?>
Without the global you would get a E_NOTICE saying that $testVariable is undefined.
It might be worth noting in the article that you shouldn't define magic values at global level and use "global" to access them in a function - like I did in the past few years.
Use define() instead.
Quick tip for beginners just to speed things up:
If you have a bunch of global variables to import into a function, it's best to put them into a named array like $variables[stuff].
When it's time to import them you just so the following;
<?php
function here() {
$vars = $GLOBALS['variables'];
print $vars[stuff];
}
?>
This really helps with big ugly form submissions.
<?php
function foo(){
static $int = 0; // correct
static $int = 1+2; // wrong (as it is an expression)
static $int = sqrt(121); // wrong (as it is an expression too)
$int++;
echo $int;
}
?>
Please update this example it is not completely correct, it can be confusing.
<?php
function foo(){
static $int = 0; // correct
static $int = 1+2; // wrong (as it is an NON-CONSTANT expression)
static $int = sqrt(121); // wrong (as it is an NON-CONSTANT expression too)
$int++;
echo $int;
}
?>
Expressions can be assigned to static variables, they just have to be constants, nothing dynamic, no calculations etc
It can be nice to use static variables in class member functions.
This avoids a 'class global' like $this->template.
Also, I like the system of get and set using the same function.
<?php
class my_page
{
public function template($name=null)
{
static $template = 'templates/page.html';
if ($name) $template = "templates/{$name}.html";
else return $template;
}
}
$p = new my_page;
$p->template('product');
include $p->template();
?>
Functions are always global. I've had fun and games in the past with the global keyword with nested functions. So for teleporting variables between functions I've occasionally adopted this simple method.
<?php
function &teleport($vars = null){
static $toSave = array();
if($vars){
foreach($vars as $k=>&$v)
$toSave[$k] = $v;
}
return($toSave);
}
function myFuncA(){
extract(teleport(),EXTR_REFS);
$a = array('a'=>1,'b'=>2);
$b = "An arbitrary value of no consequence\n";
teleport(array('a'=>$a,'b'=>$b));
}
function myFuncB(){
extract(teleport(),EXTR_REFS);
$b = "Now this is of Consequence\n";
$c = "Another of Consequence\n";
teleport(array('c'=>$c));
}
function myFuncC(){
extract(teleport(),EXTR_REFS);
// $a,$b,$c are now in current scope
print_r(get_defined_vars());
print_r($a);
echo($b);
echo($c);
}
myFuncA();
myFuncB();
myFuncC();
?>
Purists might shout something about "USE A CLASS" etc...
Maybe but sometimes you might not want to or need to.
An alternative to static variables is to use an anonymous function. Here's an example with a simple counter which goes up on each call:
<?php
// Static version
$staticCounter = function() {
// Make $a static, so its value is preserved
static $a = 0;
$a++;
return $a;
};
echo $staticCounter();
echo $staticCounter();
echo $staticCounter();
// Output:
// 1
// 2
// 3
// Closure version
$counterFactory = function () {
// We *assign* $a in this function
$a = 0;
return function() use (&$a) { // Notice the &
// We *use* $a in this function
$a++;
return $a;
};
};
// The above is a 'counter factory'; when called it returns a counter
$closureCounter1 = $counterFactory();
echo $closureCounter1();
echo $closureCounter1();
echo $closureCounter1();
// Output:
// 1
// 2
// 3
// If we call our 'factory' again, we get another counter, independent of the first
$closureCounter2 = $counterFactory();
echo $closureCounter1();
echo $closureCounter2();
echo $closureCounter1();
echo $closureCounter2();
// Output (notice that we're calling both counters)
// 4
// 1
// 5
// 2
// We can do it with arguments too
$makeCounterFrom = function($start) {
return function() use (&$start) {
$start++;
return $start;
};
};
$yearCounter = $makeCounterFrom(2012);
echo $yearCounter();
echo $yearCounter();
// Output
// 2013
// 2014
?>
This use of closures may be familiar from Javascript's 'one-shot' functions "(function() {...})()". In PHP we can do this on 2 lines using a variable, or with 'call_user_func'.
It's useful when a regular function isn't enough, but a whole class is overkill.
If you will work with a lot of global variables, using extract($GLOBALS) has some problems if you will modify the global variables inside a function:
Example:
<?php
$a = 1;
function foo() {
extract($GLOBALS);
$a = 5;
}
foo();
print $a; // will print "1" instead of "5"
?>
The problem here is that when doing extract you are only getting the values of all globals in that moment, if you modify a variable, only the local variable will be modified. So you will need to use global $a .
This is what I did in a script using a lot of global variables, please note that this is the case of 20 or 30 variables. Using global would be a real pain, and I didn't want to use objects.
<?php
$a = 1;
function globals(){
$vars = array();
foreach($GLOBALS as $k => $v){
$vars[] = "$".$k;
}
return "global ". join(",", $vars).";";
}
function foo(){
eval(globals()); // just insert this line at the beggining of each function
$a = 5;
}
foo();
print $a; // will print "5"
?>
Carlos Dubus
