Is there an easy way in PHP to convert from strings like '256M', '180K', '4G' to their integer equivalents?

Question

I need to test the value returned by ini_get(\'memory_limit\') and increase the memory limit if it is below a certain threshold, however this ini_get(\'me

Answer 1

even if the solutions above are correct, the switch statement without a break is not very intuitive and for an improved readability, to express what is really going on, I would rather do it this way:

/**
 * @return int maximum memory limit in [byte]
 */
private static function takeMaximumFootprint()
{
    $memory = ini_get('memory_limit');
    $byte = intval($memory);
    $unit = strtolower($memory[strlen($memory) - 1]);
    switch ($unit) {
        case 'g':
            $byte *= 1024 * 1024 * 1024; break;
        case 'm':
            $byte *= 1024 * 1024; break;
        case 'k':
            $byte *= 1024; break;
    }

    return $byte;
}