What are the best practices for handling simultaneous booking requests from multiple users in a PHP-based room booking system?

When handling simultaneous booking requests from multiple users in a PHP-based room booking system, it is essential to implement a locking mechanism to prevent conflicts and ensure data integrity. One way to achieve this is by using database transactions to ensure that only one user can modify the booking data at a time. Additionally, implementing a queue system for handling booking requests can help manage the flow of requests and prevent overload on the system. 

// Start a transaction to ensure data integrity
$pdo->beginTransaction();

try {
    // Lock the booking table to prevent conflicts
    $pdo->exec('LOCK TABLES bookings WRITE');

    // Process the booking request
    // Update the booking data in the database

    // Commit the transaction
    $pdo->commit();

    // Unlock the booking table
    $pdo->exec('UNLOCK TABLES');
} catch (Exception $e) {
    // Rollback the transaction in case of an error
    $pdo->rollBack();
    
    // Handle the error
}

Keywords

concurrency locking transactions race condition database normalization

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