How to Check Username and Password in MySQL Using PHP

Checking Username and Password in MySQL Using PHP

When it comes to user authentication in web applications, verifying the username and password against a MySQL database is a common practice. This process involves querying the database to confirm the existence of the provided username and then checking if the associated password matches the stored hash.

To achieve this in PHP, you can follow these steps:

1. Establish a connection to the MySQL database using mysqli or PDO.
2. Construct a SQL SELECT query to fetch the user's information based on the provided username.
3. Retrieve the password hash from the database.
4. Use password_verify() function in PHP to compare the provided password with the stored hash.
5. Handle the authentication result based on the comparison outcome.

By implementing proper error handling and secure coding practices, you can ensure that the username and password validation process is robust and resistant to SQL injection and other security vulnerabilities.