PHP Sessions: Manage User Data Across Pages with Examples

To use sessions in PHP, you need to call session_start() at the beginning of the script. This function must be called before any output (HTML, text, etc.) is sent to the browser.

Now, let's create a new page called "demo_session.php". In this page, we start a new PHP session and set some session variables:

<?php

// Start the session

session_start();

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<body>

<?php

// Set session variables

$_SESSION["username"] = "JohnDoe";

$_SESSION["email"] = "john.doe@example.com";

echo "Session variables are set.";

</body>

</html>

Get PHP Session Variable Values

Next, we create another page called "get_session.php". From this page, we will access the session information we set on the first page ("demo_session.php").

Notice that session variables are not passed individually to each new page, instead they are retrieved from the session we open at the beginning of each page (session_start()).

Also notice that all session variable values are stored in the global $_SESSION variable:

<?php

session_start();

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<body>

<?php

// Echo session variables that were set on previous page

echo "Username: " . $_SESSION['username'] . "<br>";

echo "Email: " . $_SESSION['email'] . "<br>";

</body>

</html>

Another way to show all the session variable values for a user session is to run the following code:

<?php

session_start();

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<body>

<?php

print_r($_SESSION);

</body>

</html>

Modify a PHP Session Variable

Modifying a session variable in PHP is simple. After starting the session using session_start(),

you can change the value of any session variable directly by assigning a new value to it.

<?php

session_start();

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<body>

<?php

// to change a session variable, just overwrite it

$_SESSION["na"] = "yellow";

print_r($_SESSION);

</body>

</html>

Destroy a PHP Session

Destroying a session in PHP involves removing all session data and optionally removing the session cookie. The process includes two main steps:

Unset individual session variables.
Destroy the entire session.

This ensures that the session is completely destroyed, and no session data remains accessible.

<?php

session_start();

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<body>

<?php

// remove all session variables

session_unset();

// destroy the session

session_destroy();

</body>

</html>

Note

Use session_unset() when you want to clear session data but keep the session alive (e.g., removing user data after a form submission).

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