What is the purpose of the PHP var_export function?

When using the var_export function, it converts the incoming variable into a valid PHP code representation. This means it generates a string that contains the variable content and can be directly used in a PHP script to recreate the original variable. This function is typically used for debugging and logging variable values, especially during testing or code analysis.

For instance, if you have an array $array, you can use var_export($array, true) to obtain a string representation of the array, then write it to a log file or output it to the screen. When you need to rebuild the array, you can paste this string into a PHP script and use the eval() function to execute it, thus restoring the original array variable.

Please be aware that due to potential security risks, caution should be exercised when using var_export combined with eval in actual development, especially when handling user input data.