I need to fread ...

[Anon]

I am doing the following ....

<?php
/ Read file. /
$filename = "variable.inc";
$fp = fopen($filename, "r");
$fs = filesize($filename);
$content = fread($fp, $fs);
fclose($fp);
echo "content = ".$content;
?>

The file "variable.inc" contains the following:

<?PHP
$currency="£";
$decimal=".";
$date_format="dd/mm/yyyy";
?>

The output to the screen is:

content =

... but no string from the fread.

Can anyone explain to me why?

++Tx
Pete

[Anon]

The reason you're not seeing anything is that you are sending raw, unprocessed PHP code to the browser, and the browser considers it to be unrecognizable HTML markup. Run your example, then hit "view source" in your Web browser. You will see:

content = <?PHP $currency="£"; $decimal="."; $date_format="dd/mm/yyyy"; ?>

What is it that you're trying to do? If you want to write an includeable module, use require() or include() to pull it in for processing by PHP.

[Anon]

I am developing a back office tool that allows me to edit the values of some variables in a configuration file for my web site.

So that if I have a file called variables.inc which contains for example regional settings ($currency, $date_format, etc) I would like to be able to read these variables and edit them using a form.

I would like to be able to create the form dynamically so that if I add a new variable during development of my site I do not need to remember to edit the form for my back office.

I hope this makes sense.

Anyway I took your advise and saw that the source code contained the string contents.

Steve many thanks for your help on this.

++Tx
Pete

[Anon]

OK, here's the deal. To use the stored variables, include() them in whatever routines are necessary. To edit the variable.inc file, make it writable by the Web server, then use something like this:

<?
// call this file editvariables.php

// set magic quotes to avoid unwanted
// slash-escapes
set_magic_quotes_runtime(1);

// if this php routine is getting input,
// write it to the file
if ($content)
{
$fd= fopen("variable.inc", "w");
fwrite($fd, $content);
fclose($fd);
}

// now display the form for editing the file
?>

<FORM METHOD="post">
<TEXTAREA name="content" rows=10 cols=40 wrap="virtual">
<?
// readfile passes the file through
// without evaluating it
readfile("variable.inc");
?>
</TEXTAREA><BR>
<INPUT type="submit">
</FORM>

[Anon]

Steve,

Thanks for the coding tip. I have since built a class that does the above but instead of changing the variables in 1 text area I have each individual variable in a separate field.

I use the HTTP_POST_VARS array to rewrite the code into the file using a for statement.

Here is the class:

<?php

class Setting {
var $hdr = "<?php\n";
var $ftr = " / Do not edit this file. Use the admin to change the settings. /\n ?".">";

function htmlquote($var){
    $var = ereg_replace('"','&quot', $var);
    $var = ereg_replace("'","&#39", $var);
    return $var;
}


function store_data(){
    global $HTTP_POST_VARS;
    if (isset($HTTP_POST_VARS)){
        $alen = sizeof($HTTP_POST_VARS);
        $data = $this->hdr;
        for ($j = 0; $j < $alen; ++$j){
            $ckey = key($HTTP_POST_VARS);
            $HTTP_POST_VARS[$ckey] = $this->htmlquote(current($HTTP_POST_VARS));
            $data .= "    $".key($HTTP_POST_VARS)." = \"".current($HTTP_POST_VARS)."\";\n";
            next($HTTP_POST_VARS);
        }
        $data .= $this->ftr;
        return $data;

    }else{
        $e = new Error;
        $e->error_number = "POST_VARS_NOT_PRESENT";
        $e->error_string = "Post variables were not submitted.";
        $e->calling_package = "Setting";
        $e->method = "data";
        $e->report();
    }
}


function get_data($filename){
    $fp = fopen($filename, "r");
    $fs = filesize($filename);
    $content = fread($fp, $fs);
    fclose($fp);
    // Get rid of first and last php tag ...
    $content = substr($content, 5);
    $pos = strrpos($content, ";");
    $content = substr($content, 0, $pos);
    // Do this because semi colon is the separator for explode and it could well be a variable also ...
    $content = ereg_replace("\";\"", "\"semicolon\"", $content);
    $acontent = explode(";", $content);
    $alen = sizeof($acontent);
    for ($j = 0; $j < $alen; ++$j){
        $str = trim(current($acontent));
        $end_pos = strpos($str, "=") - 1;
        $length = $end_pos - 1;
        $form_var[$j] = substr($str, 1, $length);
        next($acontent);
    }
    return $form_var;
}


function put_data($file){
    $file_back = $file.".bak";
    @unlink($file_back);
    if(!copy($file, $file_back)){
        $e = new Error;
        $e->error_number = "FILE_NOT_BACKED_UP";
        $e->error_string = "File \"$file\" could not be backed up to \"$file_back\".";
        $e->calling_package = "Setting";
        $e->method = "put_data";
        $e->report();
    }
    if (is_writeable($file)){
        $fp = fopen($file, "w");
        fwrite($fp, $this->store_data());
        fclose($fp);
    }else{
        $e = new Error;
        $e->error_number = "FILE_NOT_WRITABLE";
        $e->error_string = "Cannot write to file \"$file\".";
        $e->calling_package = "Setting";
        $e->method = "put_data";
        $e->report();
    }
}

} // end class Setting

?>

I use the PHPLIB template class (by Kristian Koehntopp) to generate the form.

Here is the code:

<?php
require("Template.inc");
require("class_setting.php");
include("enable.php");

// Initiate objects ...
$t = new Template($DOCUMENT_ROOT, "keep");
$s = new Setting;

// "act" switch ...
if (isset($act)){
// Update settings file and display result ...
$filename = urldecode($filename);
$s->put_data($filename);
} // isset($act)

// Define variables referencing files ...
$t->set_file(array("b_main_v" => "b_main_v.html", "b_setting_v_main" => "b_setting_v_main.html"));

    // b_setting_f_input ...
    $filename = "regional.inc";
    include($filename);
    $aform = $s->get_data($filename);
    if (is_array($aform)){
        $t->set_file("b_setting_f_input", "b_setting_f_input.html");
        $t->set_var("action_variable", $PHP_SELF."?act=0&filename=".urlencode($filename));
        $t->set_var($ab_setting_f_input);
        $t->set_block("b_setting_f_input", "row_setting", "row");
        $alen = sizeof($aform);
        for ($j = 0; $j < $alen; ++$j){
            // Set up form ...
            $t->set_var(array("n_variable" => ucfirst($aform[$j]), "variable" => $aform[$j], "v_variable" => ${$aform[$j]}));
            $t->parse("row", "row_setting", true);
        }
        $t->parse("content_setting", "b_setting_f_input");
    }else{
        $e = new Error;
        $e->error_number = "NO_FORM_VARIABLES";
        $e->error_string = "No form variables in the file.";
        $e->calling_package = "Setting";
        $e->method = "main";
        $e->report();
    }

    // b_setting_v_main ...
    $t->set_var("title_setting", "Settings manager");

    // b_menu_v ...
    include("menu.php");

    // b_main_v ...
    $t->set_var(array("page_title" => $ammtitle["mmtitle_setting"], "sub_menu" => $sub_menu));
    $t->parse("content", array("b_setting_v_main","b_main_v"));
    $t->p("content");

?>

The template files are as follows:

b_setting_f_input.html

<!-- Variable list: action_variable BLOCK row_setting(n_variable, variable, v_variable) -->
<form action="{action_variable}" method="post">
<table border="1" width="100%">
<!-- BEGIN row_setting -->
<tr>
<td width="50%" align="right">{n_variable}:</td><td width="50%"><input type="text" name="{variable}" value="{v_variable}"></td>
</tr>
<!-- END row_setting -->
<tr>
<td width="50%" align="right"><input type="submit" value="{submit_button}"></td><td width="50%"><input type="reset" value="{reset_button}"></td>
</tr>
</table>
</form>

b_setting_main.html
<!-- Variable list: title_setting, content_setting -->
<table border="1" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2">
<tr>
<td width="100%">{title_setting}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="100%" align="center">{content_setting}</td>
</tr>
</table>

b_main_v.html
<!-- Variable list: page_title, main_menu, sub_menu, content. -->

<head>
<title>{page_title}</title>
<script src="back_office.js"></script>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="style_ie.css">
</head>

<body>

<table border="1" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2">
<tr>
<td width="100%" align="center">{main_menu}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="100%">{sub_menu}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="100%" align="center">{content}</td>
</tr>
</table>

</body>

Once again thanks for your help ...

++Tx
Pete