php - UTF-8 Database Problem

Question

I've a MySQL table that has a UTF-8 charset and upon attempting to insert to it via a PHP form, the database gives the following error:

PDOStatement::execute(): SQLSTATE[HY000]: General error: 1366 Incorrect string value: 'xE8' for column ...

The character in question is 'è', yet I don't see why this should be a problem considering the database and table are set to UTF-8.

Edit

I've tried directly from the mysql terminal and have the same problem.

Answer 1

Your database might be set to UTF-8, but the database connection also needs to be set to UTF-8. You should do that with a SET NAMES utf8 statement. You can use the driver_options in PDO to have it execute that as soon as you connect:

$handle = new PDO("mysql:host=localhost;dbname=dbname",
    'username', 'password', 
    array(PDO::MYSQL_ATTR_INIT_COMMAND => "SET NAMES utf8"));

Have a look at the following two links for more detailed information about making sure your entire site uses UTF-8 appropriately:

• UTF-8 all the way through…
• UTF8, PHP and MySQL