PHP file_put_contents() Function

❮ PHP Filesystem Reference

Example

Write data to a file:

<?php
echo file_put_contents("test.txt","Hello World. Testing!");
?>

The output of the code above will be:

21


Definition and Usage

The file_put_contents() writes data to a file.

This function follows these rules when accessing a file:

  1. If FILE_USE_INCLUDE_PATH is set, check the include path for a copy of filename
  2. Create the file if it does not exist
  3. Open the file
  4. Lock the file if LOCK_EX is set
  5. If FILE_APPEND is set, move to the end of the file. Otherwise, clear the file content
  6. Write the data into the file
  7. Close the file and release any locks

Note: Use FILE_APPEND to avoid deleting the existing content of the file.

Syntax

file_put_contents(filename, data, mode, context)

Parameter Values

Parameter Description
filename Required. Specifies the path to the file to write to. If the file does not exist, this function will create one
data Required. The data to write to the file. Can be a string, array, or a data stream
mode Optional. Specifies how to open/write to the file. Possible values:
  • FILE_USE_INCLUDE_PATH - search for filename in the include directory
  • FILE_APPEND - if file already exists, append the data to it - instead of overwriting it
  • LOCK_EX - Put an exclusive lock on the file while writing to it
context Optional. Specifies the context of the file handle. Context is a set of options that can modify the behavior of a stream.


Technical Details

Return Value: The number of bytes written into the file on success, FALSE on failure
PHP Version: 5.0+
Binary Safe: Yes
PHP Changelog: PHP 5.1 - Added support for LOCK_EX and the ability to pass a stream resource to the data parameter

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