When encountering unexpected results like truncated values or unexpected characters, what steps can be taken to troubleshoot and identify the underlying issue in PHP?

When encountering unexpected results like truncated values or unexpected characters in PHP, it is important to check the encoding of the data being processed. Ensure that the data is being properly encoded and decoded using functions like utf8_encode() and utf8_decode(). Additionally, check for any functions that may be altering the data unintentionally, such as substr().

// Example code snippet to troubleshoot unexpected characters or truncated values
// Check encoding of the data
$data = utf8_encode($data);

// Ensure data is not being truncated unintentionally
if (mb_strlen($data) < $expected_length) {
    // Handle the truncated value appropriately
}

// Check for any functions altering the data
if (strpos($data, 'unexpected_character') !== false) {
    // Handle the unexpected character appropriately
}