APC Functions
PHP Manual

apc_define_constants

Defines a set of constants for retrieval and mass-definition

Description

bool apc_define_constants ( string $key , array $constants [, bool $case_sensitive = true ] )

define is notoriously slow. Since the main benefit of APC is to increase the performance of scripts/applications, this mechanism is provided to streamline the process of mass constant definition. However, this function does not perform as well as anticipated.

For a better-performing solution, try the » hidef extension from PECL.

Note: To remove a set of stored constants (without clearing the entire cache), an empty array may be passed as the constants parameter, effectively clearing the stored value(s).

Parameters

key

The key serves as the name of the constant set being stored. This key is used to retrieve the stored constants in apc_load_constants.

constants

An associative array of constant_name => value pairs. The constant_name must follow the normal constant naming rules. value must evaluate to a scalar value.

case_sensitive

The default behaviour for constants is to be declared case-sensitive; i.e. CONSTANT and Constant represent different values. If this parameter evaluates to FALSE the constants will be declared as case-insensitive symbols.

Return Values

Returns TRUE on success or FALSE on failure.

Examples

Example #1 apc_define_constants example

<?php
$constants = array(
    'ONE'   => 1,
    'TWO'   => 2,
    'THREE' => 3,
);
apc_define_constants('numbers', $constants);
echo ONE, TWO, THREE;
?>

The above example will output:

123

See Also