Creating a quasi FTP site in PHP

[Anon]

I am creating a quasi ftp site in PHP. Currently, when a file is uploaded, I save info about the file in a mysql database. A dynamic page lists the available files, along with an absolute URL for downloading.

I would like to "hide" the absolute file location, and have PHP open the file and feed it back to the user, when they click on a PHP link. (The reasoning behind this is I have PHP code which checks that a user has authenticated. I want to verify this through PHP to determine if the requestor is authorized to download that file).

How can I do this? Are there MIME issues here? (i.e., if I simply open a file, and output it via PHP, how does the browser know what kind of MIME data is coming?).

Thanks for any clues,
Ranyart

[shmert]

Mime types, yes. If you're using authentication steps, verify the user (without generating any output), then send a header to set the mime type, and just have PHP include() the file you want (which should not be in your htdocs directory, or users can bypass the permissions).