title: PHP wont connect to Azure SQL DB with mssql_connect
body: <p>I need to connect to an Azure SQL DB from an external PHP app on shared cPanel hosting.</p>
  
  <p>My host has enabled mssql_connect but wont enable MS's recommended sqlsrv_connect in the shared environment.</p>
  
  <p>I have whitelisted the webserver IP in Azure's Portal, and whitelisted the DB  address in cPanel.</p>
  
  <p>The test script seems to try to connect, but cant. No error information is provided: <a href="http://app.hivve.com.au/api/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://app.hivve.com.au/api/</a></p>
  
  <p>PHP is:</p>
  
  <pre><code>$db_server = "cjweb.database.windows.net:1433"; // update me
  $db_username = "username";
  $db_password = "password";
  
  $conn = mssql_connect($db_server, $db_username, $db_password);
  
  print_r(mssql_get_last_message());
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Has anyone else been down this road? My host wont provide anymore assistance so Im stuck.</p>