PHP - Calling pcntl_fork from web app (not cli) - Why not?
<p>I am familiar with the various methods available within php for spawning new processes, forking, etc... Everything I have read urges against using pcntl_fork from within a web-accessible app. Can anyone tell me why this is not recommended?</p>

<p>At a fundamental level, I can see how if you are not careful, things could quickly get out of hand. But what if you are careful? In my case, I would like to pcntl_fork my parent script into a new child, run a short series of specific functions, and then close the child. Seems pretty straightforward, right? Would it still be dangerous for me to try this?</p>

<p>On a related note, can anyone talk about the overhead involved in doing this a different way... Calling proc_open() to launch an entirely new PHP process? Will I lose any possible speed increase by having to launch the new process?</p>

<p>Background: Consider a site with roughly 2,000 concurrent users running fastcgi.</p>
