[abs]

I have checked my PHP ini file (php.ini) and display_errors is set and also error reporting is E_ALL. I have restarted my Apache webserver.

I have even put these lines at the top of my script, and it doesn’t even catch simple parse errors. For example, I declare variables with a "$" and I don’t close statements";". But all my scripts show a blank page on these errors, but I want to actually see the errors in my browser output.

error_reporting(E_ALL);
ini_set('display_errors', 1);

What is left to do?

[michael-madsen]

You can’t catch parse errors in the same file where error output is enabled at runtime, because it parses the file before actually executing anything (and since it encounters an error during this, it won’t execute anything). You’ll need to change the actual server configuration so that display_errors is on and the approriate error_reporting level is used. If you don’t have access to php.ini, you may be able to use .htaccess or similar, depending on the server.

This question may provide additional info.

[user1803477]

Inside your php.ini:

display_errors = on

Then restart your web server.

[kalhua]

Some web hosting providers allow you to change PHP parameters in the .htaccess file.

You can add the following line:

php_value display_errors 1

I had the same issue as yours and this solution fixed it.

[andre]

To display all errors you need to:

1. Have these lines in the PHP script you’re calling from the browser (typically index.php):

error_reporting(E_ALL);
ini_set('display_errors', '1');

2.(a) Make sure that this script has no syntax errors

—or—

2.(b) Set display_errors = On in your php.ini

Otherwise, it can’t even run those 2 lines!

You can check for syntax errors in your script by running (at the command line):

php -l index.php

If you include the script from another PHP script then it will display syntax errors in the included script. For example:

index.php

error_reporting(E_ALL);
ini_set('display_errors', '1');

// Any syntax errors here will result in a blank screen in the browser

include 'my_script.php';

my_script.php

adjfkj // This syntax error will be displayed in the browser

[fancy-john]

DEV environment

This always works for me:

ini_set('display_errors', '1');
ini_set('display_startup_errors', '1');
error_reporting(E_ALL);

However, this doesn’t make PHP to show parse errors occurred in the same file. Also, these settings can be overridden by PHP. In these cases the only way to show those errors is to modify your php.ini (or php-fpm.conf) with this line:

display_errors = on

(if you don’t have access to php.ini, then putting this line in .htaccess might work too):

php_flag display_errors 1

PROD environment

Note that above recommendation is only suitable for the DEV environment. On a live site it must be

display_errors = off
log_errors = on

And then you’ll be able to see all errors in the error log. See Where to find PHP error log

AJAX calls

In case of AJAX call, on a DEV server, open DevTools (F12), then Network tab.
Then initiate the request which result you want to see, and it will appear in the Network tab. Click on it and then the Response tab. There you will see the exact output.

While on a live server just check the error log all the same.

[mahendra-jella]

This will work:

<?php
     error_reporting(E_ALL);
     ini_set('display_errors', 1);    
?>

[navyakumar]

Create a file called php.ini in the folder where your PHP file resides.

Inside php.ini add the following code (I am giving an simple error showing code):

display_errors = on

display_startup_errors = on

[jxmallett]

If, despite following all of the above answers (or you can’t edit your php.ini file), you still can’t get an error message, try making a new PHP file that enables error reporting and then include the problem file. eg:

error_reporting(E_ALL);
ini_set('display_errors', 1);
require_once('problem_file.php');

Despite having everything set properly in my php.ini file, this was the only way I could catch a namespace error. My exact scenario was:

//file1.php
namespace a\b;
class x {
    ...
}

//file2.php
namespace c\d;
use c\d\x; //Dies because it's not sure which 'x' class to use
class x {
    ...
}

[chiborg]

If you somehow find yourself in a situation where you can’t modifiy the setting via php.ini or .htaccess you’re out of luck for displaying errors when your PHP scripts contain parse errors. You’d then have to resolve to linting the files on the command line like this:

find . -name '*.php' -type f -print0 | xargs -0 -n1 -P8 php -l | grep -v "No syntax errors"

If your host is so locked down that it does not allow changing the value via php.ini or .htaccess, it may also disallow changing the value via ini_set. You can check that with the following PHP script:

<?php
if( !ini_set( 'display_errors', 1 ) ) {
  echo "display_errors cannot be set.";
} else {
  echo "changing display_errors via script is possible.";
}

[frank-forte]

Warning: the below answer is factually incorrect. Nothing has been changed in error handling, uncaught exceptions are displayed just like other errors. Suggested approach must be used with caution, because it outputs errors unconditionally, despite the display_error setting and may pose a threat by revealing the sensitive information to an outsider on a live site.

You might find all of the settings for "error reporting" or "display errors" do not appear to work in PHP 7. That is because error handling has changed. Try this instead:

try{
     // Your code
} 
catch(Error $e) {
    $trace = $e->getTrace();
    echo $e->getMessage().' in '.$e->getFile().' on line '.$e->getLine().' called from '.$trace[0]['file'].' on line '.$trace[0]['line'];
}

Or, to catch exceptions and errors in one go (this is not backward compatible with PHP 5):

try{
     // Your code
} 
catch(Throwable $e) {
    $trace = $e->getTrace();
    echo $e->getMessage().' in '.$e->getFile().' on line '.$e->getLine().' called from '.$trace[0]['file'].' on line '.$trace[0]['line'];
}

[abhijit-jagtap]

Use:

ini_set('display_errors', 1);
ini_set('display_startup_errors', 1);
error_reporting(E_ALL);

This is the best way to write it, but a syntax error gives blank output, so use the console to check for syntax errors. The best way to debug PHP code is to use the console; run the following:

php -l phpfilename.php

[jewelhuq]

Just write:

error_reporting(-1);

[channaveer-hakari]

I would usually go with the following code in my plain PHP projects.

if(!defined('ENVIRONMENT')){
    define('ENVIRONMENT', 'DEVELOPMENT');
}

$base_url = null;

if (defined('ENVIRONMENT'))
{
    switch (ENVIRONMENT)
    {
        case 'DEVELOPMENT':
            $base_url = 'http://localhost/product/';
            ini_set('display_errors', 1);
            ini_set('display_startup_errors', 1);
            error_reporting(E_ALL);
            break;

        case 'PRODUCTION':
            $base_url = 'Production URL'; /* https://google.com */
            error_reporting(E_ALL);
            ini_set('display_errors', 0);
            ini_set('display_startup_errors', 0);
            ini_set('log_errors', 1); // Mechanism to log errors
            break;

        default:
            exit('The application environment is not set correctly.');
    }
}

[binit-ghetiya]

You can do something like below:

Set the below parameters in your main index file:

    ini_set('display_errors', 1);
    ini_set('display_startup_errors', 1);

Then based on your requirement you can choose which you want to show:

For all errors, warnings and notices:

    error_reporting(E_ALL); OR error_reporting(-1);

For all errors:

    error_reporting(E_ERROR);

For all warnings:

    error_reporting(E_WARNING);

For all notices:

    error_reporting(E_NOTICE);

For more information, check here.

[Author]

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