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# Chapter 4. Configuration

# The configuration file

The configuration file (called `php3.ini` in PHP 3.0, and simply `php.ini` as of PHP 4.0) is read when PHP starts up. For the server module versions of PHP, this happens only once when the web server is started. For the CGI and CLI version, it happens on every invocation.

The default location of `php.ini` is a compile time option (see the FAQ entry), but can be changed for the CGI and CLI version with the `-c` command line switch, see the chapter about using `PHP` from the command line. You can also use the environment variable `PHPRC` for an additional path to search for a `php.ini` file.

Not every PHP directive is documented below. For a list of all directives, please read your well commented `php.ini` file. You may want to view the latest php.ini here from CVS.

> Note: The default value for the PHP directive register_globals changed from on to off in PHP 4.2.0.

Example 4-1. `php.ini` example
    ; any text on a line after an unquoted semicolon (;) is ignored
    [php] ; section markers (text within square brackets) are also ignored
    ; Boolean values can be set to either:
    ;    true, on, yes
    ; or false, off, no, none
    register_globals = off
    magic_quotes_gpc = yes

    ; you can enclose strings in double-quotes
    include_path = ".:/usr/local/lib/php"

    ; backslashes are treated the same as any other character
    include_path = ".;c:\php\lib"

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