How to prevent execution of a PHP file?

Question

I want to prevent the running of x.php but I can't see how to do it in cPanel. I also can't see how to do it the .htaccess . How can I do this?

Answer 1

My suggestion would be to modify the file with a run key that only you know.

<?php
if (!isset($_GET['runkey']) || ($_GET['runkey'] != my-secret-value)) {
   die("You do not have permission to run this script");
}

Then when you wanted to run the script, you'd call it with

https://my-site.com/my_script.php?runkey=my-secret-value

Answer 2

Change the file's permissions so it is not executable. You can do this from either cPanel, FTP (right-click the file and change permissions) or from the command line (chmod).