can't figure out mysql datatime

Question

So I'm pulling my hair out over the most stupid of situations... I'm trying to save a new time to a MySQL DB and have tried everything I can think of to make this work, but I can't for some reason. Here's what I've got...

$_ = gmdate("Y-m-d H:i:s",time());
if (! mysql_query("UPDATE Accounts 
    SET likes='1',update='".$_."' 
    WHERE username='".$_POST['username']."'")) { ... }

I've tried:

update=FROM_UNIXTIME(".$_.")
update=UNIX_TIMESTAMP(".strtotime($_).")
update=UNIX_TIMESTAMP('".strtotime($_)."')
update='".UNIX_TIMESTAMP(strtotime($_))."'
update='".UNIX_TIMESTAMP($_)."'
update='".$_."'

Any help would greatly be appreciated! Thanks, Dave

Answer 1

If you're going to use update as a column name, you should escape it with backticks because it's a reserved word . The value of $_ is fine for the field itself.

mysql_query(" ... SET likes = 1, `update` = '$_' ...")

And another thing; you should escape the value of $_POST['username'] to avoid SQL injection:

" ... WHERE username='" . mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['username']) . "'");

You can also combine everything using a format string, like:

$sql = sprintf("UPDATE Accounts SET likes='%d',`update`=%s' WHERE username='%s'", 
    1,
    $_,
    mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['username'])
);

$res = mysql_query($sql) or die("yikes: " . mysql_error());

Also:

Please, don't use mysql_* functions in new code . They are no longer maintained and are officially deprecated . See the red box ? Learn about prepared statements instead, and use PDO , or MySQLi - this article will help you decide which. If you choose PDO, here is a good tutorial .

Answer 2

mysql_query("UPDATE Accounts SET likes='1',update='".$_."' WHERE username='".$_POST['username']."'")

You have two options, the now() , or curdate() functions within your query.

The now() returns the date, aswell as a time stamp in the format; YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS

The curdate() returns the date in the format YYYY-MM-DD

Your query will look like:

mysql_query("UPDATE Accounts SET likes='1', `update`='now()' WHERE username='".$_POST['username']."'")

Notice the back ticks, this needs to be used on the update, because it's a reserved word. You need to escape the reservation so you can use it as a column name.

Please, don't use mysql_* functions in new code . They are no longer maintained and are officially deprecated . See the red box ? Learn about prepared statements instead, and use PDO , or MySQLi - this article will help you decide which. If you choose PDO, here is a good tutorial .

Answer 3

update is a keyword in MySQL syntax, you shouldn't name a field update . Try naming it something like: updated_at or updated_date

If you can't do this you must to quote the field name in your query:

"UPDATE Accounts 
SET likes='1',`update`='".$_."' 
WHERE username='".$_POST['username']."'"