PHP chown( ) Function Last Updated : 11 Jul, 2025 Comments Improve Suggest changes Like Article Like Report The chown() function in PHP is an inbuilt function which is used to change the owner of the specified file. It returns true on success and false on failure. Only the superuser has the right to change the owner of a file. Syntax: bool chown ( $filename, $user ) Parameters: The chown() function in PHP accepts two parameters which are filename and user. $filename: It specifies the file whose owner you want to change. $user: It specifies the new owner. It can be a username or an user id. Return Value: The chown() function returns true on success and false on failure. Errors And Exception: The chown() function in PHP doesn't works for remote files.It only works on files which are accessible by the server's filesystem. PHP checks whether the files or directories which are being operated have the same owner as the script that is being executed or not when safe mode is enabled. Examples: Input : chown("gfg.txt", "shubrodeep") Output : true Input : $path = "/user01/Desktop/geeksforgeeks/gfg.php"; $user_name = "root"; chown($path, $user_name); Output : true Below programs illustrate the chown() function. Program 1: php <?php // Sets shubrodeep as owner chown("gfg.txt", "shubrodeep"); ?> Output: true Program 2: php <?php // Sets root as owner of the file "gfg.php" $path = "/user01/Desktop/geeksforgeeks/gfg.php"; $user_name = "root"; chown($path, $user_name); ?> Output: true Reference: https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.chown.php Create Quiz Comment S Shubrodeep Banerjee Follow 0 Improve S Shubrodeep Banerjee Follow 0 Improve Article Tags : Misc Web Technologies PHP PHP-file-handling Explore BasicsPHP Syntax4 min readPHP Variables5 min readPHP | Functions6 min readPHP Loops4 min readArrayPHP Arrays5 min readPHP Associative Arrays4 min readMultidimensional arrays in PHP5 min readSorting Arrays in PHP4 min readOOPs & InterfacesPHP Classes2 min readPHP | Constructors and Destructors5 min readPHP Access Modifiers4 min readMultiple Inheritance in PHP4 min readMySQL DatabasePHP | MySQL Database Introduction4 min readPHP Database connection2 min readPHP | MySQL ( Creating Database )3 min readPHP | MySQL ( Creating Table )3 min readPHP AdvancePHP Superglobals6 min readPHP | Regular Expressions12 min readPHP Form Handling4 min readPHP File Handling4 min readPHP | Uploading File3 min readPHP Cookies9 min readPHP | Sessions7 min read Like