Random string generator PHP

Question

I'm trying to create a random string with numbers and letters and I found this function and thought it would be good, but I don't know if it is the correct way to create a true random string or if there is an easier way to do this? Below is what I have:

function randomGen() {
    $chars = '0123456789abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ';
    $length = strlen($chars);
    $random;

    for ($i = 0; $i < 8; $i++) {
        $random = $chars[rand(0, $length - 1)];
    }

    return $random;
}

Nothing is wrong as far as syntax. I just am not sure if this is the best way. Seeing some of the other answers I can tell that I'm using more code than necessary. — , Jun 02 '15 at 17:43
You should have a look on this project : https://github.com/fzaninotto/Faker — sdespont, Jun 02 '15 at 17:43
@myPClovesME S'pose it depends on what you want to use the random string for. — Jonnix, Jun 02 '15 at 17:44
you could tack on `uniqid()` to that which would make it unique if uniqueness is what you're looking for. a lot of ways to do this. — Funk Forty Niner, Jun 02 '15 at 17:45

score 5 · Accepted Answer · answered Jun 02 '15 at 17:42

You could try using $random = substr(str_shuffle(MD5(microtime())), 0, 8);, which will output the same amount of random characters as you have in your example. I actually prefer this method over most as it doesn't require you to put in the expected characters and even more importantly, it can be done in one line of code!

Random string generator PHP

1 Answers1