What are some best practices for validating user permissions in PHP to ensure that only specific user groups can execute certain commands, like the "/prune" function?

When validating user permissions in PHP to restrict access to certain commands like the "/prune" function, it is important to check the user's role or permission level before allowing the command to be executed. One common approach is to store user roles or permissions in a database or configuration file, and then compare the user's role against the required role for executing the command.

// Check if user has permission to execute the "/prune" function
function canExecutePruneCommand($userRole) {
    $allowedRoles = ['admin', 'moderator']; // Define roles allowed to execute the command
    
    if (in_array($userRole, $allowedRoles)) {
        return true;
    } else {
        return false;
    }
}

// Example usage
$userRole = 'admin'; // Get user role from session or database
if (canExecutePruneCommand($userRole)) {
    // Execute "/prune" function
    echo "Pruning...";
} else {
    echo "You do not have permission to execute this command.";
}