Re: [phplib] PHPlib session using PHP4 sessions implementation: the code From: Max Derkachev (kot <email protected>)
Date: 11/30/00

Hi Brian,

"R.B. Scholtus" wrote:

> Hoi Max,
>
> Wow, you have another lets say port of phplib. hihihi we have 3 of them now
> :-)
> The first one is written about 2 months ago. The second was written by me, 6
> weeks ago. and now you have the third one.

Of course I did notice the previous efforts, and do not intend to reinvent the
wheel. But the functionality that existing ports in cvs tree provide is not
sufficient for me, thats why i wrote my own.

>From README4 from your phplib-4 distribution:
"This goal of this extension of phplib is to let phplib use PHP4 native
sessions instead of using a database for storing sessions data."

The goal of my extension is to let phplib use PHP4 native sessions, while using
a database, or any other container for the session data. And my extension does
so. The right thing in PHPLib is to differ between the session engine itself
and the storage of the session data.
Why do you think PHPLib developers made the lib to store data in anything but
the filesystem? It's so simple! But all the time PHPLib has existed, the
preferred way was to use a database.
I do think that the default way - using plain files in /tmp - is not productive
enough, especially on large-scale sites. To share sessions between several
physical servers you'll find it inconvenient to use nfs or something like that.
If you use custom containers instead, you'll find it possible to store the data
everywhere you want - in a relational db, in a dbm, ldap or something else -
just make a standard CT_Something class, if it does not exist.

> Your port is still using a lot of old session stuff right? did you manage to
> make it compatible?

"Old session stuff" means CT_* container methods? Yes. The goal was to use that
containers, because they are good enough to handle custom PHP4 session storage
implementation.
As for compatibility, I switched the old and my session classes to and from
several times on an app that was written using PHPlib 7.2. Works fine. I did
not find incompatibilities. With the new class, however, it works much faster.

> Well, whatever, my extension is 100% compatible and is completely
> transparent. you can make a existing php3 + phplib site use php4 sessions
> within seconds. the API is the same.

Yes. The api in your class is a mix of existing PHPLib Session methods and
several empty function definitions (commented code means empty) :). The methods
in my class, however, not only have the same names, but they are actually do
the same work, but the new way.

> i have some good documentation on how
> to 'install' and use it.

For my class there is also a good documentation - the PHPLib's documentation
:). I wrote about some incompatibilities that can occur (especially with User
class). I have not much time now to fix user.inc to be compatible with the new
class, but one can use old session class, say, rename it to Session7 and
inherit User from the Session7 class, and everything will work fine. Maybe I'll
patch the user.inc in the near future.

> the only thing i want to make it do is to decide for itself wheter it
> should use php4 native or phplib sessions. this would make it even easier to
> install. i dont know when a new version of phplib will come out, im
> wondering.

You'll find it much better to use native php4 sessions with custom containers,
that current PHPLib provides :) 

--
Best regards,
Max A. Derkachev mailto:kot <email protected>
Symbol-Plus Publishing Ltd.
phone: +7 (812) 324-5353
http://www.Books.Ru -- All Books of Russia

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