How can unnecessary header information in PHP scripts affect file downloads?

Unnecessary header information in PHP scripts can affect file downloads by causing errors or unexpected behaviors. To solve this issue, make sure to only send necessary headers for file downloads, such as Content-Type and Content-Disposition. 

<?php
// Set the content type header
header('Content-Type: application/octet-stream');

// Set the content disposition header to force download
header('Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="example.txt"');

// Output the file content
readfile('example.txt');
?>

Keywords

PHP header information file downloads content-length ob_start

Related Questions