How to Utilize PHPExcel for Data Extraction and Database Integration

Integrating data from Excel spreadsheets into a database and generating reports based on specific criteria is a common task. This guide provides a step-by-step approach to accomplish this using the PHPExcel library.

Database Integration

To transfer data from Excel into a database, you can use the following code snippet:

// Include PHPExcel_IOFactory
include 'PHPExcel/IOFactory.php';

$inputFileName = './sampleData/example1.xls';

// Read your Excel workbook
try {
    $inputFileType = PHPExcel_IOFactory::identify($inputFileName);
    $objReader = PHPExcel_IOFactory::createReader($inputFileType);
    $objPHPExcel = $objReader->load($inputFileName);
} catch(Exception $e) {
    die('Error loading file "'.pathinfo($inputFileName,PATHINFO_BASENAME).'": '.$e->getMessage());
}

// Get worksheet dimensions
$sheet = $objPHPExcel->getSheet(0); 
$highestRow = $sheet->getHighestRow(); 
$highestColumn = $sheet->getHighestColumn();

// Loop through each row of the worksheet in turn
for ($row = 1; $row rangeToArray('A' . $row . ':' . $highestColumn . $row,
                                    NULL,
                                    TRUE,
                                    FALSE);
    // Insert row data array into your database of choice here
}

The code begins by including the PHPExcel library, reading the Excel file, and retrieving the dimensions of the worksheet. It then iterates through each row of the worksheet, converting each row into an array, which can then be inserted into a database as needed.

Report Generation

Once the data is in the database, you can utilize other PHP libraries or frameworks, such as TCPDF or dompdf, to generate reports based on specific user criteria. This process will depend on the specific reporting requirements and the database structure.