How to Automatically Trigger File Downloads in PHP?

How to Trigger Automatic File Downloads in PHP

Question:

How to implement a functionality in PHP that automatically prompts users to download a file to their local machine when they click on a web link? This is commonly seen on download sites where users can save software files to their disks upon clicking.

Answer:

To achieve this behavior, you need to send specific headers before outputting the file in PHP:

header("Content-Disposition: attachment; filename=\"" . basename($File) . "\"");
header("Content-Type: application/octet-stream");
header("Content-Length: " . filesize($File));
header("Connection: close");

The Content-Disposition header specifies that the browser should prompt the user to save the file with the provided filename.

The Content-Type header indicates that the file should be treated as a generic binary stream, which most browsers recognize as a downloadable file.

The Content-Length header sets the size of the file being downloaded.

Finally, the Connection: close header instructs the browser to close the connection after the download completes.

Additional Notes:

• Some browsers may require the application/force-download MIME type instead of application/octet-stream.
• Ensure that the file exists and is accessible before attempting to download it.

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