highlight_file

(PHP 4, PHP 5, PHP 7, PHP 8)

highlight_file — Syntax highlighting of a file

Description

highlight_file(string $filename, bool $return = false): string|bool

Prints out or returns a syntax highlighted version of the code contained in filename using the colors defined in the built-in syntax highlighter for PHP.

Many servers are configured to automatically highlight files with a phps extension. For example, example.phps when viewed will show the syntax highlighted source of the file. To enable this, add this line to the httpd.conf:

AddType application/x-httpd-php-source .phps

Parameters

filename: Path to the PHP file to be highlighted.
return: Set this parameter to true to make this function return the highlighted code.

Return Values

If return is set to true, returns the highlighted code as a string instead of printing it out. Otherwise, it will return true on success, false on failure.

Notes

Caution

Care should be taken when using the highlight_file() function to make sure that you do not inadvertently reveal sensitive information such as passwords or any other type of information that might create a potential security risk.

Note:
When the return parameter is used, this function uses internal output buffering so it cannot be used inside an ob_start() callback function.