multiple db connect or only one : which is best perform ?

[spin0us]

Hi there,

I'm coding my database function, and i wonder if it is better to open the DB connexion 1 time at the beginning, or if i could open and close each time i make a resquest.
Is there a big difference between this two methods regard of performance ?

Thanks

[Sxooter]

Why would you want to close it each time?

I can't think of a single compelling reason to do it that way, and yes, it will be slower. Not that much, but again, why?

[spin0us]

In fact i wrote a function db_query, that connect to DB, make the request, and then close the connection.
Some of my web pages don't need any db connection, so i did like that. But i wanna change it to connect at the beginning and close a the end of each page (cause i use pseudo frame).

[Sxooter]

Yep, I had the same issue pop up when connecting to ldap inside functions to do things like test for membership. Here's what I came up with, adjusted to connect to our database

function skeletor(){
        # Argument list.  args in [] are optional
        # $grp, $uid, [$link]
        $argc = func_num_args();
        # Just change the numbers for a different number of args.
        if ($argc<2||$argc>3) die("2 or 3 parameters only");
        # Args in order are assigned.
        $grp = func_get_arg(0);
        $uid = func_get_arg(1);
        # This is the optional arg.  It may or may not be set.
        # Note that the "default" value setting won't really work here,
        # Since the third variable is, in fact, a handle to a system
        # resource (database connection) and we can't really have a default
        # resource, because we can't open a connection in a function
        # declaration.
        # So, in this case, we connect to the server anonymously
        # so we can run our query.
        if ($argc==3) $link = func_get_arg(2);
        else {
                include_once "database/connect.inc";
                $link = dblink();
        }
        # Remainder of function goes here...
}

That way, if I'm in a long script with a connection already in existence, I can just do:

if (skeletor("arg1","arg2",$link)) print "booyeah";

but if I', in a short script with no connection of its own, I can just do:

if (skeletor("arg1","arg2")) Print "no way!";