How important is it to thoroughly check for and remove any unnecessary characters or spaces at the beginning of PHP scripts to ensure proper functionality?

It is important to thoroughly check for and remove any unnecessary characters or spaces at the beginning of PHP scripts to ensure proper functionality because these characters can cause syntax errors or unexpected output. To solve this issue, you can use a text editor that displays hidden characters or trim the whitespace at the beginning of the script.

```php
<?php
// Remove any unnecessary characters or spaces at the beginning of the script
// This ensures proper functionality and avoids syntax errors

// Your PHP code here
?>