What is the purpose of using setInterval() in PHP with AJAX and JavaScript?

When using AJAX in PHP with JavaScript, setInterval() can be used to periodically send requests to the server for updated data without the need for manual user interaction. This can be useful for real-time updates on a webpage or for fetching new information from the server at regular intervals. 

<script>
setInterval(function(){
    // Create an XMLHttpRequest object
    var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
    
    // Configure it to make a GET request to a PHP file on the server
    xhr.open('GET', 'update_data.php', true);
    
    // Send the request
    xhr.send();
    
    // Define what to do when the response is received
    xhr.onreadystatechange = function(){
        if(xhr.readyState == 4 && xhr.status == 200){
            // Update the webpage with the new data received from the server
            document.getElementById('data').innerHTML = xhr.responseText;
        }
    }
}, 5000); // Send request every 5 seconds
</script>

Keywords

setInterval PHP AJAX JavaScript purpose

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