What is the significance of the php.ini file in PHP development?

The php.ini file is a configuration file for PHP that allows developers to customize the behavior of their PHP installation. It is used to set various settings such as memory_limit, max_execution_time, and error_reporting. Making changes to the php.ini file can help optimize PHP performance and troubleshoot common issues.

// Example of changing the memory_limit setting in php.ini
ini_set('memory_limit', '256M');