Web development continues to gain pace globally. As a result, more companies are ready to Hire PHP Developers for their upcoming projects. PHP attained great popularity over the years. We understand it’s because of its robustness, multi-platform compatibility, and ease of use.

PHP is the most commonly used language for developing static and dynamic websites. Generally, creating web pages using PHP involves a straightforward process that developers don’t have to stress about.

Moreover, the ease of use often brings in a lot of criticism for the language. However, despite the simplicity offered, developers continue to make some common PHP mistakes irrespective of their qualifications. Since these mistakes can prove to be serious blunders for websites, we wish to throw some light on them.

Common PHP Mistakes That Need Your Attention

Awareness of the errors that could occur helps developers avoid them and save a lot of time. Here’s a list of the web development mistakes you should be cutting off. 

1. Using the Wrong Quotation Marks

How you use different quotation marks changes the results of the code you’re trying to execute. Double quotes are generally used when developers want to link an entire phrase without considering dot values or other characters.

On the other hand, they use single quotation marks when declaring a string or want specific performance or results. Let’s take the help of an example to understand this better.

# $singlequo = ‘everyone’;

# $str1 = ‘good morning $singlequo’;

# $str2 = “good morning $singlequo”;

Based on the strings mentioned above, $str1 will print “good morning everyone,” and $str2 will print “good morning $singlequo”. Single quotations do not require much processing. Appropriate use of quotation marks will significantly improve code performance. 

2. Not Using Database Caching

If there’s a database involved in PHP web application development, it is advisable to use database caching in any possible form. Cache boosts the performance of the app and database, subsequently improving the user experience.

There are several reliable options to meet caching requirements for your apps and websites. The most popular ones among them are Varnish, Memcached, Redis, and Query cache. However, Memcached is still the most popular, with significant support from industry giants like Facebook. 

3. Working on PHP Scripts Without Setting Time Limits

This one is not only common but also one of the most serious mistakes PHP developers can make. Generally, developers expect PHP scripts to run and finish on time. However, most developers agree to the fact that unresponsive scripts make programming messier.

When you hire PHP programmers with enough experience, they will tell you it’s not the best to assume anything while writing codes. Setting time limits on the scripts will help you prepare for all scenarios. 

4. Not Removing Development Configurations

It’s common for developers to have development environments when trying to imitate a product and write codes. Developers often forget to remove development sites and variables. They end up loading them into the production environment. This would be a big mess if you’re creating real-time apps.

Forgetting to delete configuration files may expose the data to hacking or manipulation. This is especially possible if your app or website is hosted on a shared server.

Switching directly from development to production saves time. But developers can address a lot of errors if they don’t skip the staging process. You can also avoid hacking by choosing PHP settings specific to the hosting account. 

5. No Use of Error Reporting

Error reporting is considered to be a convenient feature in PHP that many developers fail to leverage properly. This feature can help report various code troubleshooting assumptions and save a lot of time taken for development. Even though error reporting is commonly used by most developers, many of them do not take advantage of the entire field.

E_ALL is one of the best error reporting methods. Using this one, developers can ensure that even the slightest errors in the codes are reported. Make sure you close the report after you’ve finished developing the program. The users won’t like to see any error messages on excellently designed web pages. 

6. Indexes – Too Many Or Too Less

Indexes help to improve performance, especially when querying large tables with too much data. You can optimize the speed of SELECT query statements using database indexes. 

The WHERE clause of the SELECT query allows applying indexes to columns, and MySQL can find data with fast search algorithms. While developers may be tempted to add indexes to all columns, it’s important to note that they tend to regenerate after every UPDATE and INSERT query.

The developers should decide the use of indexes on the basis of data uses and applications. Therefore, analyzing slow query logs and patterns of data usage is crucial to come up with a balanced approach to indexes.

7. Not Running Backups

Even though it seems easy, many developers mess up here because they lack proper backup systems. Of course, there’s no obligation to backup every hour, but developers should at least backup every day for significant projects. Backups can save you from a disaster in case your drive fails. Nothing could be worse than losing valuable data.

Once the code is free of all errors, make a backup. It can save you a lot of rework. Even if something goes wrong, developers can easily meet deadlines when you have a backup. If you are seeking assistance from a PHP development company, it would be great to ask for a backup from them. It will prove to be a savior in many sensitive situations. 

8. Error Suppressing

Sometimes the easier way can be the problematic one. Developers should avoid suppressing errors unless it’s creating any kind of a threat. By frequently suppressing errors manually, applications tend to run under potential error conditions. For example, developers usually suppress PHP version warning messages.

When using a php.ini file, it may be best to redirect it towards the error logs. There are several PHP plugins that keep the errors from appearing on the screen. These errors are sent to the server side. They can be found, grouped, and fixed as needed.  

9. Inappropriate Use of Comparison Operators

Comparison operators make up an essential part of PHP programming. However, not using them correctly may result in bugs and slow down the overall development process. If you are a newbie, make sure you familiarize yourself with these operators and the different results they bring in. 

10. Underestimating Privileged Access

You don’t want all users to access admin details. Restricting permissions for files, folders and databases is always a good decision. This ensures that only authorized users can access sensitive data or make changes to the development project. 

11. Not Rewriting URLs

During PHP web application development, it’s essential to rewrite URLs for various security concerns. Also, make sure that you use modern practices when creating URLs. For example, the ones that use too many variables are now illegal. 

EndNote

Mistakes are a part of life and programming. The common PHP mistakes mentioned above can only cause trouble if you don’t know the correct solutions or fail to recognize them in time. You must already know that PHP offers a safe and easy development space. Hopefully, this little guide will help you look out for any mistakes and avoid them during future development projects.