How to Clear Browser Cache Using PHP?

Clearing Browser Cache with PHP

Browser caching stores frequently accessed files locally, improving website loading times. However, it can also interfere with testing and development if cached files are outdated. This article explains how to clear the browser cache using PHP.

PHP Code for Clearing Browser Cache

The following PHP code sends headers to the client browser, instructing it to clear its cache:

<code class="php">header("Cache-Control: no-cache, must-revalidate");
header("Expires: Mon, 26 Jul 1997 05:00:00 GMT");
header("Content-Type: application/xml; charset=utf-8");</code>

• Cache-Control: no-cache, must-revalidate tells the browser not to cache the response.
• Expires: Mon, 26 Jul 1997 05:00:00 GMT sets the expiration date to a past date, forcing the browser to retrieve the resource from the server each time.
• Content-Type: application/xml; charset=utf-8 specifies the type and encoding of the response.

Usage

To use this code, place it at the beginning of your PHP script, before any other output is sent to the browser. For example:

<code class="php"><?php header("Cache-Control: no-cache, must-revalidate");
header("Expires: Mon, 26 Jul 1997 05:00:00 GMT");
header("Content-Type: application/xml; charset=utf-8");

echo "Hello World!";
?></code>

Note: This code will only affect the current page. To clear the entire cache, you may need to use a third-party library or implement a more complex caching strategy.

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