The $_FILES superglobal

PHP course · Intermediate · Lesson 76/115

Learn to read file info from multipart form data with $_FILES.

The $_FILES superglobal

An HTML form that uploads a file sends the data in multipart format. PHP captures this data with the $_FILES superglobal. Like $_POST, it is accessible from any scope; but it holds file metadata, not text.

The form's enctype attribute must be multipart/form-data. A type="file" field represents the uploaded file. PHP saves the file to a temporary path and gathers its info under $_FILES['avatar'], where avatar is the field's name.

The structure of the $_FILES array

$_FILES['avatar'] is an array with five keys. Each holds a different piece of upload info:

name: the original file name sent by the user
type: the MIME type reported by the browser (e.g. image/png)
tmp_name: the temporary path of the file on the server
error: the error code (0 means success)
size: the file size in bytes

You access these fields like $file['name']. tmp_name is temporary; PHP deletes it when the script ends, so you must move it for a permanent copy.

Exercise Print file metadata

Define test data for $_FILES['avatar']: name 'profile.jpg', tmp_name '/tmp/phpAbCd.tmp', error 0, size 2048. Then assign it with $file = $_FILES['avatar'] and print three lines: Name: + name, Path: + tmp_name, Size: + size + ' bytes'. End each line with "\n".

Show example solution

First define the $_FILES['avatar'] array, then assign it to $file and echo the three fields.
Example solution:
<?php
// Define $_FILES
$_FILES['avatar'] = [
    'name' => 'profile.jpg',
    'tmp_name' => '/tmp/phpAbCd.tmp',
    'error' => 0,
    'size' => 2048
];

$file = $_FILES['avatar'];
echo "Name: " . $file['name'] . "\n";
echo "Path: " . $file['tmp_name'] . "\n";
echo "Size: " . $file['size'] . " bytes\n";

Test yourself

Which key holds the temporary path?
- name
- tmp_name
- size
- error
Show answer

tmp_name — Correct. tmp_name holds the temporary path of the file.

Read the original name

$original = $_FILES['avatar']['____'];

Show answer

$original = $_FILES['avatar']['name'];

Match the $_FILES fields

name

Original file name
type

MIME type
tmp_name

Temporary path
size

Size in bytes
error

Error code

The $_FILES superglobal