Displaying PDF Files in Browser Using PHP or Perl

Displaying PDF files directly within a browser can be a useful technique for tracking user engagement and protecting sensitive file locations. While straightforward methods for downloading or creating PDFs exist, it's not immediately evident how to load existing PDF files for viewing.

PHP Solution:

The following PHP code can be used to display a PDF file in the browser:

Perl Solution:

Similarly, in Perl, you can use the following code:

open(PDF, "the.pdf") or die "could not open PDF [$!]";
binmode PDF;
my $output = do { local $/;  };
close (PDF);

print "Content-Type: application/pdf\n";
print "Content-Length: " .length($output) . "\n\n";
print $output;

Additional PHP Notes:

• Content-Disposition: inline instructs the browser to display the file rather than download it.
• Content-Type: application/pdf sets the correct MIME type for the PDF file.
• You may need to ensure that the necessary plugin (e.g., Adobe Reader) is installed and enabled in the user's browser.

Troubleshooting Tips:

• If the loading progress bar doesn't appear, try setting the Content-Transfer-Encoding: binary header and Content-Length: using filesize($file).
• Verify that the file path specified in $file is correct.
• Ensure that the web server has the necessary permissions to access the PDF file.

Conclusion:

By following the steps outlined above, you can successfully display PDF files in users' browsers using PHP or Perl, allowing you to track user actions and protect the original file's location.