http_redirect() vs header() [duplicate]

Question

Possible Duplicate:
php header location vs php_redirect

Throughout the years I've been using PHP I've always redirected to another URL via the header('Location: example.com') function. Today while browsing php.net I've noticed there is a function specifically for redirection called http_redirect()

Are there any benefits to using http_redirect() to header() or vice versa?

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References:

1. http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.header.php
2. http://php.net/manual/en/function.http-redirect.php

Answer 1

While http_redirect() does some things for you (such as exit, clear output buffers and sends a generic redirection body), it is not a standard function (it comes as part of an extension that's not even a pre-loaded one) and therefore you can't really rely on it being available.