Probably easy problem. How to make make refresh to add entry easily?

Jazzy_Girl

Hello I'm stuck and could please really use some help.

This following php code below takes the username that is in the brower's address bar. For an example: http://www.awebsite.com/validate.php?username=Frank

If the username happened to be Frank or anything else that is already there at the start in the browser address, that works fine that is put there with other code.

So then this following PHP if it does find a username in the browser address bar, it then sends the letter 'v' to the 'v' database column for the user name row named "Frank" Which this below lets Frank know his entry was sent to database ok because it validated.

<?php 
$con = mysql_connect("","databaseinfo","");

if(!$con){die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());}
else{ mysql_select_db("databaseinfo", $con);}

if (isset($_GET['username']))
{
$sql="UPDATE `add` SET `v` = 'v' WHERE username = '".$_GET['username']."'";
$result = mysql_query($sql);
if ($result)
{echo "Your data validated.";}
else {echo "Your entry did not validate...then info what to do if that happens". mysql_error();}
}
?>

Probably easy problem I'm having to someone who knows how to cause php to make page refresh, is how to have the page refresh after it checks to see if a username is there? Because the page is showing this: "Your data validated." Just fine like it should. But then it's NOT sending the 'v' to the database as well. It's saying it validated fine but is not sending the 'v' to the database as well. Unless the browser refresh button is manually clicked on then it will, and I don't want to make people do that or if they forget to as well. That's the problem I'm having. How to get the php to send the 'v' to the database (as well as saying it validated, which it already says it validated that part just fine).

Please let me know, thank you VERY MUCH for your help.

jasondavis

Hello I am not exactly clear on your problem, if the code works when you reload a page, it should run the code anytime there is a valid name in the URL with GET

I indented your code so it's easiar to follow.

If you can tell me exactly the problem then I can fix it.

1 other thing, $_GET['username'] is un-sanitized data from a user, you should make sure that it is not something you don't desire being submitted by a user.

You can also redirect using this...

header('Location: http://www.example.com/');

<?PHP
$con = mysql_connect("", "databaseinfo", "");

if (!$con) {
	die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
}else{
	mysql_select_db("databaseinfo", $con);
}

if (isset($_GET['username'])) {
	$sql = "UPDATE `add` SET `v` = 'v' WHERE username = '" . $_GET['username'] . "'";
	$result = mysql_query($sql);
	if ($result) {
		echo "Your data validated.";
	}else{
		echo "Your entry did not validate...then info what to do if that happens" . mysql_error();
	}
}
?>

djjjozsi

echo the $sql value to see what is in the SQL query. And keep the user inputs escaped.

<?php
$sql = "UPDATE add SET v = 'v' WHERE username = '" . mysql_real_escape_string($_GET['username']) . "'";
echo $sql; // test in phpmyadmin
$result = mysql_query($sql);
// rest of your code
?>

If i know a username i can validate it via your url ? I thinks its not a good system.

Jazzy_Girl

Thanks a lot you guys. Jasondavis you said

"if the code works when you reload a page, it should run the code anytime there is a valid name in the URL with GET"

When the page originally loads does seems like it should read the php and send the v right to the database. Even if it's not a reload. But it's not, unless the page refreshes again for some reason and reloads, weird. Security isn't a problem I have a double check system so I know who did validate but thanks a lot for concern about that.

I don't know how better to explain it jasondavis I really thought I did a great job on that best I could. Maybe let me know what isn't clear that I said? Then I can try to explain it better. I don't know where to put this and if you think it's a good way to do it.

header('Location: http://www.example.com/');

djjjozsi thank you also. I added your code with the rest below it
with the

echo $sql;

but adding that echo there didn't help. That doesn't cause an extra refresh.

So code refreshing not working yet what I need help with thank you.

Jazzy_Girl

Someone sent me a private message to add this above the validating web page.

<?php
header('Location: http://www.example.com/'); 
?>

But with the page web address instead. I did but it said 'parse error, unexpected string' where there header was. So the page didn't like it. Anyone know why?

But I don't know how that is going to work long term unless someone can tell me why it will. Because the page address will be different for each person because they all have different user names anyway. So the actual page address will be different each time anyway because they all have different user names.

Seems like someone that knows about php would know how to get a page to refresh with php in it, on it's own.

Does anyone know? Please let me know, thank you very much for your help.

djjjozsi

first. You have a link,

http://something.com/index.php?username=Frank

then in index.php you can check if the username from the url has set.

<?php
if(isset($_GET["username"]))
{
$un=$_GET["username"];
echo "i will check $un...";
}
?>

Then change this IF condition, add a feature to check if the user exists with the username: $un

<?php
include("DARATABASE_CONNECTION.php"); // don't kno what it is, go the php.net and search for: mysql_connect()
if (isset($_GET["username"])) {
    // make this value immunized from SQL injection
    $un = mysql_real_escape_string($_GET["username"]); 
    // "i will check $un...with an SQL query:";
    $sql = "select * from users WHERE username_field='$un' LIMIT 1";
    $result = mysql_query($sql) or die(mysql_error() . "---  IN QUERY: $sql");
    $one_row = mysql_fetch_assoc($sql);
    if ($one_row["v"] == 'v')
        echo "The user is already valid!";
    else {
        // here you need to add an update QUERY to make this user validated!
        $update = "update users SET v='v' WHERE username='$un' LIMIT 1";
        $update_result = mysql_query($update) or die(mysql_error() . "---  IN QUERY: $update");
        if (mysql_affected_rows() == 1)
            header("Location: validated_succesfully.php?username=$un");
        else
            die("There is a problem with this un: $un -- call the admin.");
    } 
} 

?>

Jazzy_Girl

Thank you very, very, much help is always really appreciated a LOT.

Whenever it finds the same user name in the address bar as it finds in the database, it will add a 'v' to the database if the refresh button is clicked on. That tells me it's reading a lot of the code. Otherwise no 'v' would even be sent to the database.

Maybe I should explain I'm not a better coder probably obviously why I needed to come here, because I need some help. It's been many, many months since I've been here. Maybe even a year I had to muddle through with difficulty what I learned before, to try to build a website. With economy decided I needed to work on it some more because it was going nowhere. Do notice when basics seems like they should really be working though. If someone can help explain to me also why something that is already there is not working, when seems to me like they really should be. Because if I tried to do a lot of extra steps that I don't know why I'm doing them, so I don't know how to do right as well. I'd only ruin the code because I don't understand it and don't know how to do it, and end up right back where I started with non working code. Even with your great notes that you were very nice enough to add to help me understand, that I studied hard I'm not a great enough coder to know why some of it is needed and know how to fix it. If I understand why something needs done, then it's a lot easier for me to try to fix it or to use someone's great tips. Otherwise I'm shooting in the dark.

Because of those things, I know why I might need to do extra steps but not sure why I would need to do some or many. Someone here long time ago helped me build the below code. Maybe some can tell me, seems like this is doing several of the same thing that was built with help below. Even though I really appreciate a lot, anyone that is nice enough to try to help me, to explain some of why I'm confused, would help to know why I need to put it into something like 'un' and some other extra steps when it seems like it's already asking for some of them. Looks like it's asking below already,

if (isset($_GET['username']))
// If user name is in browser address bar, then put v in database with the same exact username. Seems like is already saying that in code below.

<?PHP 
$con = mysql_connect("", "databaseinfo", ""); 

if (!$con) { 
    die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error()); 
}else{ 
    mysql_select_db("databaseinfo", $con); 
} 

if (isset($_GET['username'])) { 
    $sql = "UPDATE `add` SET `v` = 'v' WHERE username = '" . $_GET['username'] . "'"; 
    $result = mysql_query($sql); 
 if (!$result) {
    die('Invalid query: ' . mysql_error());
     }
if ($result) { 
        echo "Your data validated."; 
    }else{ 
        echo "Your entry did not validate...then info what to do if that happens" . mysql_error(); 
    } 
} 
?>

But found out something else is wrong in the above, if it helps to know another error I found in code above. If that might help to explain what the other error might be as well or not.

$result = mysql_query($sql);
 if (!$result) {
    die('Invalid query: ' . mysql_error());
    }

Because just as another test, I put a user name in the browser adress bar that was not in the database. And it still said 'Your data validated' on the page when it shouldn't have. Because nothing would have been able to send to the database. It should not have said it validated, there should have been an error message. It also didn't give me any error messages of any kind on the page, like it should have as well. Makes me think it might be some clue that something is wrong with the way,

$result = mysql_query($sql);

..is written as well. But as I look over and over it and look in the PHP Manual. I can't figure out what the error is in '$result' in the php code. Why it's not showing error like it should, when there is no user name found in the database. Why it's not sending 'v' to the database unless the refresh button is clicked on manually as well.

It's difficult to know how to fix someone's harder code if I don't understand a lot of their own code they wrote. Then it is to try to fix real basic code, that I do understand quite a bit of it. Even if it's not all. Only trying hard on what I'm able understand and some that I don't, I'm not smart enough to become a real programmer doing the best I can. Hope that makes sense to someone.

djjjozsi

then query down the table based on the user name, and count the results with mysql_num_rows()

<?php
include("DARATABASE_CONNECTION.php"); // don't kno what it is, go the php.net and search for: mysql_connect()
if (isset($_GET["username"])) 
{
    // make this value immunized from SQL injection
    $un = mysql_real_escape_string($_GET["username"]); 
    // "i will check $un...with an SQL query:";
    $sql = "select * from users WHERE username_field='$un' LIMIT 1";
    $result = mysql_query($sql) or die(mysql_error() . "---  IN QUERY: $sql");

if (mysql_num_rows($result)==1) 
{
/* count the results and if its 1, the user is in the database, we expect one row*/

    $one_row = mysql_fetch_assoc($sql); // take the results into $one_row array
    if ($one_row["v"] == 'v')
        echo "The user is already valid!";
    else {
        // here you need to add an update QUERY to make this user validated!
        $update = "update users SET v='v' WHERE username='$un' LIMIT 1";
        $update_result = mysql_query($update) or die(mysql_error() . "---  IN QUERY: $update");

		// if at least one row updated succesfully
        if (mysql_affected_rows() == 1)
            header("Location: validated_succesfully.php?username=$un");
        else
            die("There is a problem with this un: $un -- call the admin.");
    }
} else
    print "User is not in the database!"; // mysql_num_rows($result) is 0 !

} else
echo "select at least one username!"; // $_GET["username"] is empty...

?>

Jazzy_Girl

Can tell you really know what you're doing hugely also because you typed it up so quickly. I thought you were giving me a lot of examples that time but much of it I wouldn't be able to get to work, without major adjustments that I couldn't do. Amazingly for myself that I was able to understand a lot of even that better level, thank you very much for simplifying so I could understand that much better. You must have figured out about where my level was because you mostly nailed it. :o Whew! So I'm finally to a workable level where you fixed the part I was having trouble with.

But also because of your awesome error alerts that you included as well. I was able to figure out what I needed to add where and what needed to be adjusted. Thanks really a lot for adding those error alerts for both me and probably yourself too. Because of your error alerts I didn't need to come back and keep asking you several questions, the page said what was wrong with different lines for me because you added good ones of those. You're awesome.

I changed this:

if (mysql_affected_rows() == 1) 
header("Location: validated_succesfully.php?username=$un");

To this instead:

if (mysql_affected_rows() == 1) 
echo "Validated succesfully username $un";

Because I got a header error that said header of page had already been sent. I didn't know how to fix that part. If you think I really need it anyway and need to add it back in, please someone tell me why and what to do. I looked up header info well already and don't know how those work. I thought you had to add those at top of page before anything else. But none of that seems to work either.

All the validations and errors seem to be appearing fine without the header line, at least in IE and Mozilla.

Also I didn't what this did and if it's important:

$update_result = mysql_query($update) or die(mysql_error() . "---  IN QUERY: $update");

I don't see

$update_result

being pulled elsewhere for anything. Hopefully you can tell me what that does,, if you think I even need it. I just left it in for now didn't want to take any chance of fouling anything up that might not be happening at this time in testing. But without seeing

$update_result

being pulled anywhere else I don't know what it would be. I'm not sure why code wasn't working before without hitting the refresh button but something major must have been missing I just couldn't figure out what. Thanks for setting me on my way and helping me fix that big problem about it with some extra stuff you thought would help. Sent something maybe you can use someday. Now I can go through and change the text add the html to the echos and 'dies' to match the page. Like I said you're awesome!! :p