Using Curl/Post to execute a HTTP request

Question

I have a loop in a php file to HTTP_Request Server Via CURL->POST.

But I don't know if I'm missing any security considerations. Also, is there a better way to perform this http request?

<?php
$j = 0;
while ($j <= 1) {
    $url    = 'http://127.0.0.1/index.php';
    $fields = array(
        'input1' => 'variable1',
        'input2'    => 'variable2',
    );
    $postvars         = http_build_query($fields);
    $COOKIE_FILE_PATH = "/tmp/cookiescron.txt";
    $ch = curl_init();
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $url);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POST, count($fields));
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $postvars);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_TIMEOUT, 2);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, false);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_FORBID_REUSE, true);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT, 2);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_DNS_CACHE_TIMEOUT, 10);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_FRESH_CONNECT, true);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, array('Connection: close'));
    // execute post
    curl_exec($ch);
    // close connection
    curl_close($ch);
    $j++;
    sleep(25);
}
?>

This executes 2 requests in around 25~30 seconds.

Is it possible to repackage your array data so that you don't need to perform iterated curl calls? The variability of your project data is not evident in your posted snippet. — mickmackusa
– mickmackusa, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 0:37
is mandatory, becouse i need sleep 25 second every bucle...i think — Minos Framework
– Minos Framework, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 0:39
So, whatever url you are sending your data to will only accept single doses of data? Can't send a deeper data structure? If you have written the receiving script, I recommend writing it to receive multiple rows of data so that only one curl call is necessary. — mickmackusa
– mickmackusa, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 0:40
the url is the one mentioned in the script; and yes, the php is ready to receive other types of data passed by post, json, etc ... but I do not understand the question around the data structure ... — Minos Framework
– Minos Framework, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 0:44
...well, if you want a review regarding security, you should probably show the security part. — mickmackusa
– mickmackusa, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 7:53

mickmackusa · Accepted Answer · 2019-06-16 21:01:25Z

Well, I didn't take the time to test my snippets, but here are two suggestions...

#1 (preferred) - Bundle all of your input data into a single array, then pass it to your receiving url with a single curl call. It is best practice to minimize total calls (avoid iterated calls) so long as the operation works for your project, of course. This avoids sleepy time too.

$ch = curl_init();
$fields = [
    ['input1' => 'variable1', 'input2' => 'variable2'],
    ['input1' => 'variable3', 'input2' => 'variable4']
];
$COOKIE_FILE_PATH = "/tmp/cookiescron.txt";  // this doesn't appear to be used
$options = [
    CURLOPT_URL               => 'http://127.0.0.1/index.php',
    CURLOPT_POST              => true,  // https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.curl-setopt.php says boolean is expected
    CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS        => http_build_query($fields),
    CURLOPT_TIMEOUT           => 2,
    CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER    => false,
    CURLOPT_FORBID_REUSE      => true,
    CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT    => 2,
    CURLOPT_DNS_CACHE_TIMEOUT => 10,
    CURLOPT_FRESH_CONNECT     => true,
    CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER        => ['Connection: close']
];
curl_setopt_array($ch, $options);
curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);

#2 - If your requirements obligate the use of iterated curl calls, I'd recommend only updating the CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS value within the loop. (Again, not tested)

$ch = curl_init();
$fields = [
    ['input1' => 'variable1', 'input2' => 'variable2'],
    ['input1' => 'variable3', 'input2' => 'variable4']
];
$COOKIE_FILE_PATH = "/tmp/cookiescron.txt";  // this doesn't appear to be used
$options = [
    CURLOPT_URL               => 'http://127.0.0.1/index.php',
    CURLOPT_POST              => true,  // https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.curl-setopt.php says boolean is expected
    CURLOPT_TIMEOUT           => 2,
    CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER    => false,
    CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT    => 2,
    CURLOPT_DNS_CACHE_TIMEOUT => 10,
];
foreach ($fields as $data) {
    $options[CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS => http_build_query($data)]; // overwrites previous data
    curl_setopt_array($ch, $options);
    curl_exec($ch);
    sleep(25);
}
curl_close($ch);

The takeaway here is to always try to leave as many processes as possible OUTSIDE of the loop to reduce calls/workload.

Relevant documentation:

if CURLOPT_FORBID_REUSE is true , this will get a warning??? — Minos Framework
– Minos Framework, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 20:04
That makes sense. If I want to keep the connection / reuse the curl handle, I'd better allow its reuse. Updated. — mickmackusa
– mickmackusa, Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 21:02

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