2 Methods to Get Extension Configuration in PHP

PHP offers a flexible ecosystem where extensions expand the core functionality with additional features. In some cases, it is necessary to inspect the configuration details of a specific extension - for example, when troubleshooting issues or verifying environment settings. This tutorial provides 2 methods how to get extension configuration in PHP.

Method 1 - ReflectionExtension class

The ReflectionExtension class provides a programmatic way to get detailed information about a specific extension. By creating an instance and calling its info method, configuration details can be displayed.

It is important to note that the info method directly prints the information instead of returning it. When further processing or storing of this data is required, output buffering should be used to capture the printed content.

<?php

$ext = new ReflectionExtension('openssl');
ob_start();
$ext->info();
$info = ob_get_clean();

echo $info;

Example output:

openssl

OpenSSL support => enabled
OpenSSL Library Version => OpenSSL 3.0.2 15 Mar 2022
OpenSSL Header Version => OpenSSL 3.0.2 15 Mar 2022
Openssl default config => /usr/lib/ssl/openssl.cnf

Directive => Local Value => Master Value
openssl.cafile => no value => no value
openssl.capath => no value => no value

Method 2 - command line

Another straightforward way to view extension configuration is through the command line interface. The following command displays detailed information about a specific extension:

php --ri openssl

This method is quick and does not require writing any PHP code, making it convenient for fast inspection.