PHP Exceptions vs. Errors: What\'s the Difference and How Do You Handle Them?

Exceptions vs Errors in PHP

In PHP, errors and exceptions are two distinct mechanisms for handling abnormal situations. While both result in program termination, they differ in their intended purpose and the nature of the problems they indicate.

Exceptions

Exceptions are intended to handle situations that are potentially recoverable. These are typically conditions that arise during runtime and are caused by the program's logic, such as:

• Invalid input
• Database connection failures
• Memory allocation errors

To handle an exception, a programmer can use the try-catch block. If an exception occurs during the execution of the try block, the corresponding catch block is executed to handle the exception.

Errors

Errors, on the other hand, are typically unrecoverable and indicate fatal problems that prevent the program from continuing. These can include:

• Syntax errors
• I/O errors
• Permission denied errors

Errors cannot be caught with a try-catch block. When an error occurs, it is immediately raised and the program terminates abnormally.

Example

Consider the following example:

try {
    $row->insert();
    $inserted = true;
} catch (Exception $e) {
    echo "There was an error inserting the row - ".$e->getMessage();
    $inserted = false;
}

echo "Some more stuff";

In this example, the insert() method may raise an exception if, for example, the database fails to add the row. The catch block can handle this exception and allow the program to continue execution.

On the other hand, if we were to encounter a syntax error, such as a missing semicolon, the program would immediately terminate with an error.

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