How can PHP developers accurately track the number of visitors actively viewing a website in real-time?

To accurately track the number of visitors actively viewing a website in real-time, PHP developers can utilize a combination of server-side techniques such as storing visitor information in a database or using session variables to keep track of active users. By updating the visitor count in real-time based on user actions, developers can provide an accurate representation of the current number of active users on the website.

// Start the session
session_start();

// Update visitor count
if(isset($_SESSION['visitors'])) {
    $_SESSION['visitors']++;
} else {
    $_SESSION['visitors'] = 1;
}

// Display the number of active visitors
echo "Active visitors: " . $_SESSION['visitors'];