database generated PHP code

cyberius

This is what I hope to be a simple question.

I need to confirm something for a situation beyond my control. There is a system that uses a database to generate pages. The pages that are generated use php code in them. The system generating the code is not PHP based, so it is a bit of a kluge. The primary question I have is this: if those pages are generated on the fly and passed to Apache with the PHP module loaded, will it interpret the PHP code? I would think that it would not matter the manner in which it is passed, via a static text file (name.php) or code that is passed to Apache.

I am assuming this works, and that sites like this one are built on part of this principle. This is different than having a PHP file that does SQL calls since it is running (stupidly I believe) in the reverse.

Any help would be great!

Thanks!

toma42

Are the pages static then? If so, just extract them from the database and you're done.

If they are not static, your last line about in reverse is wrong....in that case, you'll need to detail the steps it takes to view one of these pages currently and what your plans are for new software, etc.

Tom

cyberius

I apologize for being unclear. Here is the scenario.

Someone hasd built a java/javascript/cgi interface for entering web articles into a database. Some of the functionality of the web site currently depends on PHP. Instead of building the entire automated system using PHP to do SQL calls, they cheaped out and hired someone who does not know anything about PHP. As a result, they have this system that generates files for each article, rather than serving everything up dynamically. They tell me that the reason is because the PHP code requires that there is a file that gets loaded into the web server in order to parse the PHP code. The system supposedly would be serving dynamically if that was not the case. Is there a way around having to pre-generate all the pages and still have the PHP code work?

I am pretty fuzzing on how this level of the parser works.

toma42

there is a file that gets loaded into the web server in order to parse the PHP code. The system supposedly would be serving dynamically if that was not the case.

Er, the system needs the php module (file) running in the web server, but with the file there, pages WILL be served dynamicly.

Is the original developer available? Can you tell the company to pay for their inital mistake of cheaping out?

Can you quit? 🙂

It sounds like you've got a king-sized bowl of spaghetti to me. Personally, I'd rewrite it but that luxury is normally not available.

I still suggest trying to extact the pages from the database and not using the database at all to serve pages.

Tom

cyberius

Thank you for the confirmation. The deal is a raw one, and I am fortunate enough to be able to say, "No!" to fixing this one. Where I used to work, some friends of mine still work there, and I have done a fair amount of contracting to the firm. They asked me to answer a few questions about a system the company execs just hired a consulting firm to program for them. Supposedly it is a news delivery engine (the site is for a newspaper), and it is technically functional. The problem is that they did not write pieces to replace all of the PHP-based functionality in their JSP based system. As a result, they have a perfectly good database designed to integrate pieces of the navigation etc together, and they are not using it for that. It has turned into a gigantic (and expensive) PHP/HTML code generation engine. This is another case where they would have saved a great deal of money (in labor, consulting, etc) if they had hired a proper PHP programmer, or commissioned a complete solution using a different technology.

Thanks for your help!