require_once()

The require_once() statement includes and evaluates the specified file during the execution of the script. This is a behavior similar to the require() statement, with the only difference being that if the code from a file has already been included, it will not be included again. See the documentation for require() for more information on how this statement works.

require_once() should be used in cases where the same file might be included and evaluated more than once during a particular execution of a script, and you want to be sure that it is included exactly once to avoid problems with function redefinitions, variable value reassignments, etc.

For examples on using require_once() and include_once(), look at the » PEAR code included in the latest PHP source code distributions.

Return values are the same as with include(). If the file was already included, this function returns TRUE

Note: require_once() was added in PHP 4.0.1

Note: Be aware, that the behaviour of require_once() and include_once() may not be what you expect on a non case sensitive operating system (such as Windows).

Example #1 require_once() is case insensitive on Windows

<?php
require_once "a.php"; // this will include a.php
require_once "A.php"; // this will include a.php again on Windows! (PHP 4 only)
?>

This behaviour changed in PHP 5 - the path is normalized first so that C:\PROGRA~1\A.php is realized the same as C:\Program Files\a.php and the file is required just once.

See also require(), include(), include_once(), get_required_files(), get_included_files(), readfile(), and virtual().