show_source Function Usage Example Explained: How to Display the Full Source Code of the Current PHP File

<?php
/*
Article Title: show_source Function Usage Example Explained: How to Display the Full Source Code of the Current PHP File

In PHP, sometimes we want to view the source code of the current PHP file directly in the browser, which is useful for debugging or learning. PHP provides a very handy built-in function — show_source() (alias highlight_file()), which outputs the source code of the specified file in a syntax-highlighted format.

Next, we’ll go through a simple example to demonstrate how to use the show_source() function to display the full source code of the current PHP file.

Example code:
*/

echo "

Example: Display the Current PHP File Source Code

// Get the path of the current script file
$currentFile = FILE;

// Use the show_source() function to output the source code;
// the true parameter returns the code instead of outputting it directly
// Here we output directly, so we don’t pass the second parameter
echo "

"</span></span><span>;<br>
</span><span><span class="function_ invoke__">show_source</span></span><span>(</span><span><span>$currentFile</span></span><span>);<br>
</span><span><span>echo</span></span><span> </span><span><span>"

/*
Code Explanation:

1. FILE is a PHP magic constant that represents the full path of the current file.

2. The show_source() function reads and outputs the specified file’s source code, with syntax highlighting automatically applied.

3. Since the source code may contain HTML tags, wrapping it in

    ensures the formatting is preserved.</p>
   </li>
   </ol>
   <p>Use Cases:</p>
   <ul>
   <li>
   <p>Viewing code structure during debugging.</p>
   </li>
   <li>
   <p>Displaying code in teaching contexts.</p>
   </li>
   <li>
   <p>Code review and analysis.</p>
   </li>
   </ul>
   <p>Notes:</p>
   <ul>
   <li>
   <p>For security reasons, do not expose source code in production environments to prevent information leaks.</p>
   </li>
   <li>
   <p>Ensure that only authorized users can access pages displaying source code.</p>
   </li>
   </ul>
   <p>Conclusion:<br>
   The show_source() function is a very convenient tool in PHP for syntax-highlighted display of source code. By passing the current file path (<strong>FILE</strong>), you can directly show the full source code of the current file, making it especially useful in debugging and teaching scenarios.<br>
   */</span><br>
   </span><span><span>?></span></span><span></p>
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