How can PHP be used to manage user sessions effectively in a forum setting to track new posts?

To manage user sessions effectively in a forum setting to track new posts, you can use PHP sessions to store user information and track their activity on the forum. When a user logs in, you can store their user ID in the session variable. Then, when they make a new post, you can update their last activity timestamp in the database. This way, you can easily track new posts by users and display them accordingly.

// Start session
session_start();

// Check if user is logged in
if(isset($_SESSION['user_id'])) {
    $user_id = $_SESSION['user_id'];
    
    // Update user's last activity timestamp in the database
    // This can be done when a user makes a new post
    // Example SQL query: UPDATE users SET last_activity = NOW() WHERE user_id = $user_id;
}