How can the syntax of SQL queries generated in PHP be optimized to prevent errors when creating tables?

When generating SQL queries in PHP to create tables, it is important to properly escape and sanitize user input to prevent SQL injection attacks and syntax errors. One way to optimize the syntax of SQL queries is to use prepared statements with parameterized queries. This not only helps prevent SQL injection but also ensures that the query syntax is correct, reducing the chances of errors when creating tables.

// Establish a database connection
$servername = "localhost";
$username = "username";
$password = "password";
$dbname = "myDB";

$conn = new mysqli($servername, $username, $password, $dbname);

// Check connection
if ($conn->connect_error) {
    die("Connection failed: " . $conn->connect_error);
}

// Prepare and execute a parameterized query to create a table
$stmt = $conn->prepare("CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS users (
    id INT(6) UNSIGNED AUTO_INCREMENT PRIMARY KEY,
    firstname VARCHAR(30) NOT NULL,
    lastname VARCHAR(30) NOT NULL,
    email VARCHAR(50),
    reg_date TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP ON UPDATE CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
    )");

$stmt->execute();

// Close the connection
$conn->close();