How can PHP developers implement a secure and efficient file transfer process between server and client when dealing with PDF files?

To implement a secure and efficient file transfer process between server and client when dealing with PDF files, PHP developers can use secure file transfer protocols like SFTP or HTTPS. This ensures that the data is encrypted during transfer, reducing the risk of interception. Additionally, developers can optimize the file transfer process by using chunked transfer encoding to send the PDF file in smaller parts, improving performance.

// Example code snippet using SFTP for secure file transfer
$server = 'sftp://example.com';
$username = 'username';
$password = 'password';
$remoteFile = '/path/to/remote/file.pdf';
$localFile = '/path/to/local/file.pdf';

$connection = ssh2_connect($server);
ssh2_auth_password($connection, $username, $password);
$sftp = ssh2_sftp($connection);

$remoteStream = fopen("ssh2.sftp://$sftp$remoteFile", 'r');
$localStream = fopen($localFile, 'w');

stream_copy_to_stream($remoteStream, $localStream);

fclose($remoteStream);
fclose($localStream);