mod_rewrite, php and the .htaccess file

Question

I\'m coding a small CMS to get a better understanding of how they work and to learn some new things about PHP. I have however come across a problem.

I want to use mo

Answer 1

Your PHP should for very obvious reasons not be able to modify .htaccess. Even if you get that to work, I'm not sure if it is wise.

How about using a more abstract setup in regard to mod_rewrite rules? Define your general URL pattern, as you would like to use it. For example:

/object/action/id

Then write a set of rules that reroute HTTP requests to a PHP page, which in turn makes the decision what page is to run (say, by including the relevant PHP script).

RewriteRule ^/(\w+)/?(\w+)?/?(\d+)?$ /index.php?object=$1&action=$2&id=$3 [nocase]

This way you would not have to update .htaccess very often an still be flexible.