PHP mysqli real_connect() Function

PHP MySQLi Reference : Open a new connection to the MySQL server, with extra connect options

Definition and Usage

The real_connect() / mysqli_real_connect() function opens a new connection to the MySQL server.

This function differs from connect() in the following ways:

  • real_connect() requires a valid object created by init()
  • real_connect() can be used with options() to set different options for the connection
  • real_connect() has a flag parameter
  • Syntax

    Object oriented style:

    $mysqli -> real_connect(host, username, password, dbname, port, socket, flag)

    Procedural style:

    mysqli_real_connect(connection, host, username, password, dbname, port, socket, flag)

    Parameter Values

    Parameter Description
    connection Required. Specifies the MySQL connection to use
    host Optional. Specifies a host name or an IP address
    username Optional. Specifies the MySQL username
    password Optional. Specifies the MySQL password
    dbname Optional. Specifies the default database to be used
    port Optional. Specifies the port number to attempt to connect to the MySQL server
    socket Optional. Specifies the socket or named pipe to be used
    flag Optional. Specifies different connection options. Possible values:
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_COMPRESS - Use compression protocol
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_FOUND_ROWS - Return number of matched rows (not affected rows)
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_IGNORE_SPACE - Allow spaces after function names. Make function names reserved words
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_INTERACTIVE - Allow interactive_timeout seconds of inactivity before closing connection
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_SSL - Use SSL encryption
    • MYSQLI_CLIENT_SSL_DONT_VERIFY_SERVER_CERT

    Technical Details

    Return Value: TRUE on success. FALSE on failure
    PHP Version: 5+
    PHP Changelog: PHP 5.6: Added MYSQLI_CLIENT_SSL_DONT_VERIFY_SERVER_CERT flag

    Example - Procedural style

    Open a new connection to the MySQL server, with extra connect options:

    <?php
    $con = mysqli_init();
    if (!$con) {
      die("mysqli_init failed");
    }

    // Specify connection timeout
    mysqli_options($con, MYSQLI_OPT_CONNECT_TIMEOUT, 10);

    // Specify read options from named file instead of my.cnf
    mysqli_options($con, MYSQLI_READ_DEFAULT_FILE, "myfile.cnf");

    mysqli_real_connect($con,"localhost","my_user","my_password","my_db");
    ?> 

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