php array_search not returning values

Question

I am putting the contents of an text file into an array via the file() command. When I try and search the array for a specific value it does not seem to return any value but when I look at the contents of the array the value I am searching for is there.

Code used for putting text into array:

    $usernameFileHandle = fopen("passStuff/usernames.txt", "r+");
    $usernameFileContent = file("passStuff/usernames.txt");
    fclose($usernameFileHandle);

Code for searching the array

$inFileUsernameKey = array_search($username, $usernameFileContent);

Usernames.txt contains

Noah
Bob
Admin

And so does the $usernameFileContent Array. Why is array_search not working and is there a better way to do this. Please excuse my PHP noob-ness, thanks in advance.

Community · Accepted Answer · 2023-11-17 20:42:18Z

2

Because file():

Returns the file in an array. Each element of the array corresponds to a line in the file, with the newline still attached

To prove this try the following:

var_dump(array_search('Bob
', $usernameFileContent));

You could use array_map() and trim() to correct the behavior of file(). Or, alternatively, use file_get_contents() and explode().

edited Nov 17, 2023 at 20:42

CommunityBot

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answered Jul 9, 2013 at 22:08

Jason McCreary

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Comments

jcsanyi · Accepted Answer · 2013-07-09 22:15:45Z

1

To quote the docs:

Each element of the array corresponds to a line in the file, with the newline still attached.

That means that when you're doing the search, you're searching for "Noah" in an array that contains "Noah\n" - which doesn't match.

To fix this, you should run trim() on each element of your array before you do the search.

You can do that using array_map() like this:

$usernameFileContent = array_map($usernameFileContent, 'trim');

Note, too, that the file() function operates directly on the provided filename, and does not need a file handle. That means you to do not need to use fopen() or fclose() - You can remove those two lines entirely.

So your final code could look like this:

$usernameFileContent = array_map(file('passStuff/usernames.txt'), 'trim');
$inFileUsernameKey = array_search($username, $usernameFileContent);

edited Jul 9, 2013 at 22:15

answered Jul 9, 2013 at 22:10

jcsanyi

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1 Comment

logicbloke Over a year ago

If you don't specify strict mode, shouldn't it return the key for "Noah\n" even if the needle is "Noah"?

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