Manage web sessions effectively with PHP’s powerful cookie handling capabilities. Explore these programming examples to understand how to Create, modify or delete PHP Cookies:
In this tutorial, you will learn what a cookie is, how to create, modify & delete PHP cookies, and how to verify if cookies are enabled. Also, some frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to this topic are covered here.
Please note that we have used PHP version 7 in all examples.
Let’s begin!
Table of Contents:
PHP Cookies: A Practical Guide with Examples
What is a Cookie
A cookie is a small file that the server embeds on the client or the computer to identify a user.
A cookie can store information like:
- IP addresses
- Email addresses
- Usernames
- Passwords
- Previous purchase details
- Items viewed
- Preferred settings like themes, etc.
Cookies are not used to identify you personally, but some information that cookies collect may be linked. A cookie can only hold a maximum of 4KB of data.
Furthermore, cookies are very useful for developers as well as computer users. Some of the advantages of cookies include:
- Light-weight and occupies less memory
- Easily configurable
- Make browsing easier
- Users can delete cookies
Creating a PHP Cookie
The PHP setcookie() function is used to create/set a PHP cookie. It has seven parameters that are listed below. Only the name parameter is mandatory.
- name – The name of the cookie
- value – The value of the cookie
- expires_or_options – the time the cookie expires
- path – The path (directory) which the cookie will be available on
- domain – the domain in which the cookie is available to
- secure – indicates that the cookie should be sent over a secure HTTPS connection from the client
- httponly – if true, the cookie is accessible only through the HTTP protocol
Furthermore, setcookie() must appear before <html>.
Syntax:
setcookie(
string $name,
string $value = "",
int $expires_or_options = 0,
string $path = "",
string $domain = "",
bool $secure = false,
bool $httponly = false
): bool
The isset() function is used to check whether or not the cookie is set.
The superglobal, $_COOKIE is used to retrieve the cookie details like name, value, etc.
Let’s see an example. You can practice this example by running the following programming code:
<?php
$cookie_name = "Student";
$cookie_value = "David";
setcookie($cookie_name, $cookie_value, time() + (86400 * 7), "/");
?>
<html>
<body>
<?php
if(isset($_COOKIE[$cookie_name])) {
echo "Cookie is set! Cookie name is $cookie_name and value is $cookie_value.";
} else {
echo "Cookie is not set!";
}
?>
</body>
</html>
Note 1: In the above cookie example, we have used three parameters:
- name
- value
- expiration date – 86400 which indicates that the cookie will expire after 1 day. Similarly, you can use 86400 * 7 for 7 days, 3600 for one hour, 60 for one minute, etc.
The forward slash character (/) is used to indicate that the cookie is available on the whole website. If not, you have to specify the relevant path.
Note 2: After running the above programming code, refresh the page.
The below text shows the browser output of the above programming code (after refreshing the page).
Cookie is set! The cookie name is Student and the value is David.
Modifying a Cookie
Modifying a cookie is straightforward. You just need to set the cookie again to modify a cookie.
Deleting a Cookie
A cookie can be deleted using the setcookie() function with a past expiration date.
Let’s see an example. You can practice this example by running the following programming code:
<?php
//delete cookie
setcookie("student", time() - 60);
?>
<html>
<body>
<?php
echo "Cookie is deleted!";
?>
</body>
</html>
How to Verify If Cookies are Enabled
The count() function and the $_COOKIE superglobal are used to verify whether cookies are enabled or not.
Let’s see an example. You can practice this example by running the following programming code:
<?php
setcookie("test_cookie","test");
?>
<html>
<body>
<?php
if(count($_COOKIE)>0){
echo "Cookies are enabled!";
}else{
echo "Cookies are disabled!";
}
?>
</body>
</html>
Note: After running the above programming code, refresh the page.
The below text shows the browser output of the above programming code (after refreshing the page):
Cookies are enabled!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is a PHP cookie?
A PHP cookie is a small file that the server embeds on the client or the computer. It is used to identify users.
2. Where do cookies reside?
Cookies reside in your browser folder or subfolder.
3. Can cookies identify you personally?
Cookies do not identify you personally, but some information that cookies collect may be linked.
4. Do cookies collect IP addresses?
Yes, cookies can be used to collect IP addresses.
5. How much data can a cookie hold?
A cookie can only hold a maximum data capacity of 4KB.
6. How do you set cookies?
You can set a cookie using the PHP setcookie() function as shown below.
Example:
<?php
setcookie(“user”, “/”);
?>
7. What information is stored in PHP cookies?
Cookies can store information like email addresses, usernames, passwords, previous purchase details, items viewed, preferred settings like theme, etc.
Conclusion
A PHP cookie is a small file that the server embeds on the client or the computer to identify a user.
It can store information like IP addresses, email addresses, usernames, passwords, previous purchase details, items viewed, preferred settings like theme, etc. You can create, modify and delete PHP cookies.
Was this helpful?
Recommended Reading
-
List of most frequently asked core PHP interview questions with detailed answers and code examples for freshers and experienced candidates: Do you want to learn or test your PHP skills for an interview? Here in this article, we will discuss some of the most common and frequently asked Core PHP interview…
-
Overview of PHP Testing Frameworks and Tools: In today's world, PHP is one of the faster and most universally used open-source server-side scripting languages. PHP is mainly used for large-scale websites like Facebook, WordPress etc. It has accurate & precise certification, large association, and supported frameworks. PHP programming language is…
-
List of the Best Free PHP IDE & PHP Code Editors with Features, Comparison & Pricing. Also, Learn the Differences & Similarities Between PHP IDE And Editors: PHP IDE helps developers to write, run, and execute the PHP code. PHP editors help developers while writing code by Highlighting syntax, Auto-completion,…
-
Introduction to Cookies Primarily we will focus on what exactly HTTP cookies or Internet cookies are and how they work. It would be easy for you to understand the test cases for testing website cookies when you have a clear understanding of how cookies work, how cookies get stored on…
