How can the use of localhost addresses like 127.0.0.1 improve communication between PHP server and clients while bypassing firewall restrictions?

Using localhost addresses like 127.0.0.1 can improve communication between PHP server and clients by allowing them to communicate directly without going through a firewall. This bypasses any restrictions imposed by the firewall, ensuring smooth communication between the server and clients.

// Set the server address to localhost
$server_address = '127.0.0.1';

// Set up a socket connection to the server
$socket = socket_create(AF_INET, SOCK_STREAM, SOL_TCP);
if ($socket === false) {
    echo "Failed to create socket: " . socket_strerror(socket_last_error());
}

// Connect to the server
$result = socket_connect($socket, $server_address, 80);
if ($result === false) {
    echo "Failed to connect to server: " . socket_strerror(socket_last_error());
}

// Send data to the server
$data = "Hello, server!";
socket_write($socket, $data, strlen($data));

// Receive data from the server
$response = socket_read($socket, 1024);
echo "Server response: " . $response;

// Close the socket connection
socket_close($socket);