What are the best practices for storing images in PHP applications - in the file system or in the database?

When deciding where to store images in a PHP application, it is generally recommended to store the images in the file system rather than in the database. Storing images in the file system is more efficient in terms of performance and storage space, as databases can become bloated with large image files. Additionally, storing images in the file system makes it easier to manage and access the images directly. 

// Example of storing an image in the file system
$targetDirectory = "uploads/";
$targetFile = $targetDirectory . basename($_FILES["fileToUpload"]["name"]);

if (move_uploaded_file($_FILES["fileToUpload"]["tmp_name"], $targetFile)) {
    echo "The file " . htmlspecialchars(basename($_FILES["fileToUpload"]["name"])) . " has been uploaded.";
} else {
    echo "Sorry, there was an error uploading your file.";
}

Keywords

image storage file system database PHP application best practices

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