check if file exists in php

Question

if (!(file_exists(http://mysite.com/images/thumbnail_1286954822.jpg))) {   
$filefound = \'0\';                         
}

why won\'t this work?

Answer 1

Based on your comment to Haim, is this a file on your own server? If so, you need to use the file system path, not url (e.g. file_exists( '/path/to/images/thumbnail.jpg' )).