php - mysql_ deprecated

I have been told that the mysql_ extension is now deprecated in the current version of PHP and will be removed at some point.

What should I use instead of this and how?

For nearly all my queries I use it.

For example:

$result = mysql_query($query);

if (!$result) die ("Database access failed: " . mysql_error());

$rows = mysql_num_rows($result);

Answer

According to the PHP Manual, you should use any of the following:

To be clear though, neither of these is a mere substitute for mysql_num_rows(). Your code must eventually be rewritten entirely to use the MySQLi or PDO API in lieu of mysql_*().