How do I connect to an online MySQL database using PHP?

Question

I am testing a website offline with XAMPP. My PHP code connects and works with my local MySQL database (ie 'localhost' or '127.0.0.1'). I wish to conduct tests using an online MySQL database. I am trying to use PHPMyAdmin Demo Server but I get an error when trying to connect to the server. I changed the 'DB_HOST' to '192.168.30.23' (which seems to be the demo server ip address). Am I missing something?

Here is a snippet of my code:

<?php

define('DB_NAME', 'ears');
define('DB_USER', 'root');
define('DB_PASSWORD', '');
define('DB_HOST', '192.168.30.23');

$link = mysql_connect(DB_HOST, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD);

if (!$link) {
die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
}

$db_selected = mysql_select_db(DB_NAME, $link);

if (!$db_selected) {
die('Can\'t use ' . DB_NAME . ': ' . mysql_error());
}

?>

Thank you in advance.

Answer 1

The phpMyAdmin MySQL demo server is not available to test your script. Google for "public access MySQL server" to maybe find one.