filter_input
(PHP 5 >= 5.2.0)
filter_input — Gets a specific external variable by name and optionally filters it
Description
Parameters
- type
-
One of INPUT_GET, INPUT_POST, INPUT_COOKIE, INPUT_SERVER, or INPUT_ENV.
- variable_name
-
Name of a variable to get.
- filter
-
Filter to apply.
- options
-
Associative array of options or bitwise disjunction of flags. If filter accepts options, flags can be provided in "flags" field of array.
Return Values
Value of the requested variable on success, FALSE if the filter fails, or NULL if the variable_name variable is not set. If the flag FILTER_NULL_ON_FAILURE is used, it returns FALSE if the variable is not set and NULL if the filter fails.
Examples
Example #1 A filter_input() example
<?php
$search_html = filter_input(INPUT_GET, 'search', FILTER_SANITIZE_SPECIAL_CHARS);
$search_url = filter_input(INPUT_GET, 'search', FILTER_SANITIZE_ENCODED);
echo "You have searched for $search_html.\n";
echo "<a href='?search=$search_url'>Search again.</a>";
?>
The above example will output something similar to:
You have searched for Me & son. <a href='?search=Me%20%26%20son'>Search again.</a>
See Also
- filter_var() - Filters a variable with a specified filter
- filter_input_array() - Gets external variables and optionally filters them
- filter_var_array() - Gets multiple variables and optionally filters them