SERVER['HTTP REFERER'] no longer any use?

[internetheaven]

I have a script that runs based on the page/site that referred the user to that page.

20 out of 400+ visitors actually ran the script. SERVER['HTTP REFERER'] apparently returned no value for the majority of them.

I have Firefox (Mac and Windows), Safari, IE and Chrome. Only my Mac Firefox browser didn't send the referer information when I tested the script so I thought it would be pretty useful.

20/400 doesn't sound useful.

Google Analytics must have something that can get the information? They seem to know every website the users have come from?

[swa66]

It's 'HTTP_REFERER' not 'HTTP REFERER'
If you found 20 on "HTTP REFERER", I'd be really surprised.

Check your apache logs if they log referrers, if they do , you can crosscheck what your script sees with what your web server saw.

HTTP_REFERER is not 100% reliable: you basically get what the browser choses to send you. Add-ons like RefControl for Firefox allow users control over what the browser sends to whom.

Ref: [php.net...]