What are some common mistakes to avoid when handling file operations in PHP, such as opening and reading text files?

One common mistake to avoid when handling file operations in PHP is not properly checking if a file exists before trying to open or read it. This can lead to errors or unexpected behavior if the file is not found. To solve this issue, always use functions like file_exists() or is_file() to check if the file exists before proceeding with any file operations.

$file_path = "example.txt";

if (file_exists($file_path)) {
    $file_content = file_get_contents($file_path);
    echo $file_content;
} else {
    echo "File does not exist.";
}