What are some potential pitfalls when using functions like is_link() and file_exists() to check for file existence in PHP?

One potential pitfall when using functions like is_link() and file_exists() to check for file existence in PHP is that symbolic links may not be resolved properly, leading to inaccurate results. To ensure accurate file existence checks, it's recommended to use the realpath() function to resolve symbolic links before performing checks. 

$filePath = '/path/to/file.txt';

// Resolve symbolic links
$realPath = realpath($filePath);

// Check if the file exists
if ($realPath && file_exists($realPath)) {
    echo "File exists at path: $realPath";
} else {
    echo "File does not exist";
}

Keywords

is_link file_exists file existence PHP functions potential pitfalls

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