Question

I need 2 different paths, one for includes and one for js/css etc. I’m using mod_rewrite. The below works fine….

Currently all my files contain this at the top

define('SERVER_ROOT',   'C:/wamp/www/site_folder/');
define('SITE_ROOT',     'http://localhost/site_folder/');

and then files are called like so:

require_once SERVER_ROOT . 'st_wd_assets/inc/func_st_wd.php';    

<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="<?php echo SITE_ROOT;?>st_pages/user_area/css/user_area.css" media="screen"/>

as you can probably see, it’s going to be a massive chore to update the top of every file everytime i move versions between the localhost and my live server.

What’s the best/standard way of defining these ROOT values?

I can’t see a solution in the $_SERVER super global? Do people normally just use VirtualHosts? But then wouldn’t it still be necessary to define ROOT constants?

Answer 1

Yes.
People normally just use VirtualHosts.

There are several ways.

• You can use a relative path to include a config file.
• You can use a DOCUMENT_ROOT from the $_SERVER superglobal to place a config file there.
• You can use web-server config if possible. like php_value auto_prepend_file in .htaccess
• And at least you can detect your environment and choose between two roots, both written in conditions at the top.
• And yes, if you’re using mod_rewrite – make a front controller which will include all the other files, so – the only one file to place these settings.