What role does urlencode() play in ensuring the successful transfer of data between servers using file() in PHP?

urlencode() plays a crucial role in ensuring the successful transfer of data between servers using file() in PHP by encoding special characters in the data to a format that can be safely transmitted. This helps prevent data corruption or errors during the transfer process.

$data = array(
    'key1' => 'value1',
    'key2' => 'value2'
);

// Encode the data using urlencode()
$encoded_data = http_build_query($data);

// Make the request using file()
$response = file('http://example.com/api.php?' . $encoded_data);

// Process the response