Is there a simple way to require/include files that have links relative to the folder they are in?

ie. If i use

PHP Code:

require('nav.php'); 


in a file that is in the root directory and has a link to contact.php in the same directory the link would look like this.

<a href='contact.php'></a>

Now if i want to have a file in a different directory (not the root folder) ie. /root/scripts/forum/index.php

is there a way to require(../../../nav.php) and have the links in that file relative to the folder that nav.php is in.

ie, the contact link should now look like this

<a href='../../../contact.php'></a>

I hope i explained that well enough, i had i hard time trying to explain it in words, sorry if it doesnt make sence.

What I like to use in this case is relative path, but not from the current path, but from the site root.

Just a reminder:

./a.html => the file a.html in the current folder
../a.html => the file a.html in the parent folder
/a.html => the file a.html in the root of your site

So, when you prepare your site structure (because, you have planned it, right ???) you know which page is going to be where. So in your include, you can define them with an "/dir/subdir/file" rather than "../../../subdir/file".

What you need to do, then, to locate your include files, is to base your include on the PHP generated variable.
Particulary on $_SERVER['DOCUMENT_ROOT'] which give the path to the root of your web site, on the perspective of the server.

This is what I do in my prepended script.
A prepended script is a script run before every page access. I use it to initiate db connection, and include object oriented classes for object stored in session.

PHP Code:

define('DOC_ROOT',$_SERVER['DOCUMENT_ROOT']);

require_once(DOC_ROOT."/libs/db/db.php");
require_once(DOC_ROOT."/classes/init.php");
require_once(DOC_ROOT."/logger/logger.php");

/*
* A buch of odd stuff, like sql injection prevention and such...
*/
session_start()

require_once(DOC_ROOT."/db/init.php"); 


Now, every time I need to include something, from anywhere in the site, I simply use the DOC_ROOT (way shorter than $_SERVER['DOCUMENT_ROOT']) define I've set in my prepend file.

Thank you, Very helpful.

I know i did it a weird way in the beginning for a few reasons. The way you do it should work very nice.

Or... couldnt you just put the full file path?... :|

for my navi.php and that i make all file paths <? echo "$core" ?>/whatever.php and then on everypage i have a config.php included which has $core = http://whatever i find it makes it aloet easier, dont have to worry about if i move it form domain to domain or fodler etc, i can just change ne thing in the config file...

~Dan

Btw is require and include the same or is there any differances?

There is a slight difference between them.

Include only trigger a warning if the file is not found, but the scripts carry on.
Require throws an error, and breaks the script.

So wouldn include be the preferd method?... why would anyone use require?..

Because there are case where I don't want my app to continue when there are errors.
And I don't want to digg in the log file to see why something don't work.

Or... couldnt you just put the full file path?

I don't do this for 1 simple reason.

I develop my apps on a local server.
When I publish the files on the production server, the path and many other things are different.
I use a revision management system to keep track of my updates (svn, if you're curious), and in this view, I want to have the same files that can adapt themselve upon both servers.

So, I put variables in the apache config (via the setEnv directive) and many of my modules adapt themself upon those variables.
Especially on the LOCATION variable, which state if the site is dev, preprod or production, and switch to the db dsn accordingly.

yea, but would this work (in a more difficult way) to me doing <? echo "$core" ?>/file/path ?

because then u just change one variable, and every file path in the iste changes instantly!?

Unless there is soemthing i am missing,

because then u just change one variable, and every file path in the iste changes instantly!?

Yes, of course it works, but it means you must use different files on your production server and your dev server, and that's a scheme I want to avoid at any costs.
When you work alone, no problem.
When you are 5 developpers working together, one make an update, the other overwrite the file, and bam, nothing works anymore.

1 file, with 1 code, and the adaptation is done outside PHP, this way PHP only hold the logic, and the details are setup outside of php.

Im not going to argue any more XD.

Dan

I won !!!

:-D)))

Seriously, I was true on my reasons, I have been confronted to problems because of the production files/dev files sepraration, and I used this technique for a few years now, and it avoided me several problems.

No hard feelings, I hope, Dan.

Are you kidding?

Im going to form a whole hate campaign against you now!,
You [Insert REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY insulting words here] [Add millions of ! here]



Im crying now over all the horible mean stuff you said!!!


DAN
(annouying webmasters since 2005)

O god... And I let my unedited post for almost 1 hour...
Shame on me....

Lol, all i can say is my methods suit me.

all i need is for the rest of he internet and the world to make eveything fit my perfect methods for everything. then we would all be happy... where did i put that bobble hat?... my feet are cold... XD

just some random crap Xd...
Dan
(wasting server space since 2002)