How can PHP developers handle file system access and fopen_wrappers to ensure successful downloads and avoid security issues?

To handle file system access and fopen_wrappers securely in PHP, developers should sanitize user input to prevent directory traversal attacks, validate file paths before opening them, and use fopen with appropriate mode settings for read-only access. Additionally, setting proper file permissions and using secure file storage locations can help avoid security issues.

// Example of securely downloading a file using fopen

$filename = 'example.txt';
$filepath = '/path/to/files/' . $filename;

if (file_exists($filepath)) {
    header('Content-Description: File Transfer');
    header('Content-Type: application/octet-stream');
    header('Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="' . $filename . '"');
    header('Expires: 0');
    header('Cache-Control: must-revalidate');
    header('Pragma: public');
    header('Content-Length: ' . filesize($filepath));
    readfile($filepath);
    exit;
} else {
    echo 'File not found.';
}