Android add multiple MYSQL rows using PHP - php

Question

Basically I know how to add one row to an external mysql database using android. Now im looking to add multiple rows at once. Heres my code so far.
PHP Script
<?php
$host="db4free.net"; //replace with database hostname
$username="xxxxxx"; //replace with database username
$password="xxxxxxx"; //replace with database password
$db_name="xxxxxxx"; //replace with database name
$con=mysql_connect("$host", "$username", "$password")or die("cannot connect");
mysql_select_db("$db_name")or die("cannot select DB");
/* Get the value in the whichfunction parameter
sent from the android application which will
determine the fucntion to call. */
$getFunctionToCall = $_POST['whichfunction'];
/* Depending on the value of the whichfunction
parameter switch to call different function */
switch ($getFunctionToCall){
case "AddUser":
echo AddUser($_POST['name'],$_POST['password']);
break;
}
/* Function to add user to the user table */
function AddUser($name,$password){
$sql = "insert into users(name,password) values('$name','$password')";
if(mysql_query($sql)){
return 1; // Return 1 for success;
}else{
return 2;// Return 2 for database error;
}
}
?>
Android Method
protected void SendToPhpFile() {
ArrayList<NameValuePair> pp = new ArrayList<NameValuePair>();
pp.add(new BasicNameValuePair("whichfunction", "AddUser"));
String[] names = {"David","Jimmy","Shane"};
String[] passwords = {"mypass1","mypass2","mypass3"};
for (int i=0;i<names.length;i++){
pp.add(new BasicNameValuePair("names[]", String.valueOf(names[i])));
pp.add(new BasicNameValuePair("passwords[]", String.valueOf(passwords[i])));
}
try{
status = "";
status = CustomHttpClient.executeHttpPost(ConnectBase.link, pp);
String res=status.toString();
res= res.replaceAll("\\s+","");
/* Depending on value you return if insert was successful */
if(res.equals("1")){
Toaster("Data successfully added.");
}else{
Toaster(status);
}
}catch(Exception e){
Toaster("Data successfully added: " + e.toString());
}
}
So I think I have the android size more or less sorted but I'm not 100%. If you guys could come up with a solution to how I've started that would be great. I've got zero experience with php so don't really know where to start when adding more than 1 row.
Thank you

Answer 1

Something like this maybe?
INSERT INTO table (name, password ) VALUES ('Name1', 'Password1'), ('Name2', 'Password2'),('Name3', 'Password3'), ('Name4', 'Password4')

Answer 2

Using mysqli you can not only avoid deprecated mysql functions but you can easily loop over insert values using prepared statements.
Referencing
In the following example we will be inserting usernames and passwords into the database in a safe and efficient way.
$x = array(array('bob','mypasswordlol'),array('your_mother','knitting5000'));
$stmt = $mysqli->prepare("INSERT INTO table (`username`, `password`) VALUES (?, ?)");
foreach ( $x AS $k => $value) {
$stmt->bind_param($stmt, "ss", $value[0], $value[1]);
$stmt->execute();
}
// close your connection
Hopefully this helps. Prepared statements are the bees knees when it comes to mysqli. It will help you prevent database injection and increase performance as well!