Rename file on upload PHP

Question

I am trying to build a script to upload and rename an image to a folder and store the path in my sql db.

Here is where I am at: The file get uploaded both to the folder and the pathname to the db but I cannot figure out how to rename the filename. Ideally I would like to make the filename unique so I don't duplicates.

<?php   
//preparing the patch to copy the uploaded file
$target_path = "upload/";

//adding the name of the file, finishing the path
$target_path = $target_path . basename( $_FILES['picture']['name']); 

//moving the file to the folder
if(move_uploaded_file($_FILES['picture']['tmp_name'], $target_path)) {
   echo "The file ".  basename( $_FILES['picture']['name']). 
   " has been uploaded";
} else{
  echo "There was an error uploading the file, please try again!";
}

//getting input from the form
$name = $_POST['name'];
$description = $_POST['description'];

//preparing the query to insert the values
$query = "INSERT INTO complete_table (name, description, picture) VALUES ('$name', '$description', '". $target_path ."')";

//opening connection to db
$link = mysql_connect('localhost', 'root', 'password');
if (!$link) {
   die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
}

 //selecting a db
mysql_select_db("wcs_venues", $link) or die(mysql_error());

//running the query
$result = mysql_query($query) or die (mysql_error());

//closing the connection
mysql_close($link);

?>

I am new with all this and I am really trying but after looking at many tutorial and answered questions on Stack-overflow, I realized I needed help. Thank you in advance for helping this newbie.

Answer 1

Well, this is where you set the name of the file being saved:

$target_path = "upload/";
$target_path = $target_path . basename( $_FILES['picture']['name']);

In this case, you're building the file name in the variable $target_path. Just change that to something else. What you change it to is up to you. For example, if you don't care about the name of the file and just want it to always be unique, you could create a GUID or a Unique ID and use that as the file name. Something like:

$target_path = "upload/";
$target_path = $target_path . uniqid();

Note that this would essentially throw away the existing name of the file and replace it entirely. If you want to keep the original name, such as for display purposes on the web page, you can store that in the database as well.