android - Explain file_get_contents('php://input')

Question

I am writing an android app to connect to PHP web service and through my searches in internet I faced file_get_contents('php://input'); and I understood some parts of it's functionality but I still don't get it. What are php://input or php://stdin or stuff like that? I've read http://php.net/manual/en/function.file-get-contents.php and I confused much more.

Please explain it completely.

Answer 1

The information comes from here: http://www.php.net/manual/en/wrappers.php.php

When information is sent to the server via a POST request, it is saved in a temporary file.

The command file_get_contents('php://input') reads the raw information sent to PHP -- unprocessed before it ever gets put into $_POST or $_REQUEST super globals.

This technique is often used when someone is uploading a file, such as an image.

EDIT: removed $_GET