Including files in PHP scripts from any directory with absolute path

Question

Possible Duplicate:
PHP require file from top directory

I've been using PHP for a long time but I've always just written it to get the job done, now I'm trying to learn best practices and improve my skill. Right now I'm wondering what is the best method for including files in PHP scripts from any directory.

I have always done the following:

<?php
    // From settings.php
    define('ABSPATH', '/home/dalyn/public_html/');

    // Then I put this at he top of all of my other files

    include 'includes/settings.php';
    include ABSPATH . 'includes/db.php';
    include ABSPATH . 'includes/functions.php';
?>

But if my files are in a subdirectory I need to do something like:

<?php
    include '../includes/settings.php';
    include ABSPATH . 'includes/db.php';
    include ABSPATH . 'includes/functions.php';
?>

Is there a better way to be doing this? I'm starting to learn OOP so if there is an OOP solution that applies I'm all ears.

Thank you.

You can also use `include("$_SERVER[DOCUMENT_ROOT]/includes/settings.php");` if it's a fixed setup. (Note: absent array key quotes only in double quoted string context!) — mario, Nov 09 '12 at 23:50

score 2 · Answer 1 · answered Nov 10 '12 at 00:35

I usually have something similar to this in my application/Bootstrap.php (for a zend framework application).

define( 'BASE_PATH'          , dirname( __DIR__ ) . '/'                          ); //!< application root directory: note this file is not in the root directory  
define( 'VAR_PATH'           , BASE_PATH        . 'var/'                         ); //!< optional system generated config files
define( 'CACHE_PATH'         , BASE_PATH        . 'cache/'                       ); //!< caches in the filesystem. See ISV_CacheManager
define( 'APPLICATION_PATH'   , BASE_PATH        . 'application/'                 ); //!< where the modules live
define( 'MODEL_PATH'         , APPLICATION_PATH . 'models/'                      ); //!< path to models
define( 'FORM_PATH'          , APPLICATION_PATH . 'forms/'                       ); //!< path to forms
define( 'CONTROLLER_PATH'    , APPLICATION_PATH . 'modules/default/controllers/' ); //!< path to default module controllers
define( 'HELPER_PATH'        , APPLICATION_PATH . 'helpers/'                     ); //!< global zend view helpers
define( 'INCLUDE_PATH'       , APPLICATION_PATH . 'include/'                     ); //!< useful support classes
define( 'DOCUMENT_ROOT'      , $_SERVER['DOCUMENT_ROOT']                         ); //!< http root directory. note _no_ trailing slash.  
define( 'IMAGE_PATH'         , '/image/'                                         ); //!< from the http document root 
define( 'SCRIPT_PATH'        , '/js/'                                            ); //!< from the http DOCUMENT_ROOT

Some of those get fed to an autoloader, others I use for direct include paths like require_once MODEL_PATH . 'Directory/Directory/IncludeFile.php';

Using this method do you have at the top of each file: include 'application/Bootstrap.php' or include '../application/Bootstrap.php'? — thestepafter, Nov 10 '12 at 00:39
no. Zend Framework uses a Front Controller. So there is an apache rewrite which sends all urls through DOCUMENT_ROOT /index.php. I include the Bootstrap.php in index.php. I prefer this over having a lot of php files in the document root because it allows me to centralise app security into a couple of places instead of having to secure each .php file individually — Steve, Nov 10 '12 at 00:59

Dinesh · Accepted Answer · 2012-11-10T03:09:58.317

did you try autoloading? http://php.net/manual/en/language.oop5.autoload.php .. Sorry I dont have permissions to write comments yet..

Updated.. Wesley is right, you will need to have the class name same as file name for autoload to work. I am sorry to assume that you are doing OOP-PHP. If not autoload will not work you will have to do it traditional way

function __autoload($class) {
require ABSPATH. $class .".php";
}

Any file inside the ABSPATH with classname = filename will be automatically loaded.

If you have various paths with different files in them than you will have to create multiple constant variables with path name. And than call them inside autoload with the specific path.

for eg.

class Myprogram{

public function __construct(){

define('ABSPATH', '/home/dalyn/public_html/');
define('ABSPATH_1', '/home/dalyn/public_html/includes');
define('ABSPATH_2', '/home/dalyn/public_html/some_other_folder');

}

function __autoload($class) {
require ABSPATH. $class .".php";
    require ABSPATH_1. $class .".php";
    require ABSPATH_2. $class .".php";
 }   

}

//Some other file
$myProg = new Myprogram(); // this will define your constants as well as autoload all the required files

and if you are not using OOP. Than you will have to define different paths as constants and include the files the way you do it now. and if you want to automate this process

this code will be helpful.

if ($handle = opendir(ABSPATH)) {
  while (false !== ($entry = readdir($handle))) {
     if ($entry != "." && $entry != "..") {
        include_once ABSPATH . $entry;
    }
  }
  closedir($handle);
}

this will include all the files present in the folder ABSPATH. You can create a function and call it with whatever path you want to put.

Hope this helps.

Dins

If autoload don't I still need to include a file that has the autoload code in it? Can you give a code example? — thestepafter, Nov 09 '12 at 23:58
`__autoload` and `spl_autoload_register` are for loading classes only. — Wesley Murch, Nov 10 '12 at 00:00
That is what I figured which is why I asked for a code example. Thanks Wesley. — thestepafter, Nov 10 '12 at 00:13

score 0 · Answer 3 · edited Nov 09 '12 at 23:56

0

when I include something I use the dirname(__FILE__) to get the path to the file that try to include.

<?php
include dirname(__FILE__).'/includes/db.php';

But if you use OOP I suggest you to look at some class loader that will include the file automaticaly for you when you use a class. There is some already coded that exist like the one with Doctrine and the one with Composer.

http://www.doctrine-project.org/

http://getcomposer.org/

edited Nov 09 '12 at 23:56

dan-lee

14,365
5
52
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answered Nov 09 '12 at 23:55

EmeraldCoder

527
3
12

I tried using dirname(__FILE__) and it works in the root directory but once I go into subdirectories it breaks unless I add .. before the /includes/db.php. – thestepafter Nov 10 '12 at 00:19
because dirname give the path to the file where you put the require code. – EmeraldCoder Nov 10 '12 at 00:21
1

`__DIR__` is easier than `dirname( __FILE__ )` – Steve Nov 10 '12 at 00:36

score 0 · Answer 4 · answered Nov 10 '12 at 03:14

0

 set_include_path('.'.PATH_SEPARATOR.'your path to includes folder'
            . PATH_SEPARATOR . './library/'
);

answered Nov 10 '12 at 03:14

Arun Killu

13,581
5
34
61

Including files in PHP scripts from any directory with absolute path

4 Answers4