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Buffering and flush() VS ob_flush()

Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2003 11:00 am
by SimonEast
This output buffering system has been confusing me for a while. Coming from an ASP background, I understand the concept of a buffered script versus an unbuffered one, but PHP seems to have two types of buffering.

The INI settings "implicit_flush" and "output_buffering" sound as if they're configuring the same thing, but there must be some difference. Also the functions flush() and ob_flush() are distinct but I cannot grasp where the difference lies. Wouldn't turning "implicit_flush" off imply some sort of buffering of output?

Can someone explain the technical difference between these two concepts, including where should you use flush() versus ob_flush()?

Thanks.

< Simon >