so I need to deserialize some XML files, I'm trying to rename a property attribute in the child classes.
The structure is very simples but I'm struggling on this. I already tried several examples but none works, hope someone can help me with this.
I have several XML files but the structure for all of them is the same:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<ClassNameHeader Version="0">
<ElementName attributes... />
<ElementName attributes... />
...
</ClassNameHeader>
Basically I have a root "ClassNameHeader" where ClassName is set for each child of RefXMLRoot, this acts as a base class so I can have like, i.e: Foo.xml (FooRefXML -> FooHeader, Bar.xml (BarRefXML -> BarHeader) and so on. Examples:
Foo.xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<FooHeader Version="0">
<Foo attributes... />
<Foo attributes... />
...
</FooHeader>
Bar.xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<BarHeader Version="0">
<Bar attributes... />
<Bar attributes... />
...
</BarHeader>
As you can see each XML has a different element name, that's why I need to change the XmlElement attribute name to match each file, like [XmlElements("Foo")] for Foo.xml or [XmlElements("Bar")] for Bar.xml and so on.
Base class structure:
public abstract class RefXMLRoot<RefElementType>
{
[XmlAttribute("Version")]
public Int32 Version{ get; set; }
[XmlElement]
public List<RefElementType> Elements { get; set; }
public RefXMLRoot()
{ }
}
Child class structure:
[XmlRoot("FooHeader", IsNullable = false)]
[XmlElementsOverride(ElementName = "Foos")] // This is the attribute that I'm using to store the Elements attribute name.
public class FooRef : RefXMLRoot<FooElement>
{
// Here is the tricky part
// I want to rename this Elements attribute name that is from base class
// using the ElementName passed to XmlElementsOverride
// So here would be like:
// [XmlElement("Foos")]
// public List<FooElement> Elements { get; set; }
public FooRef()
{ }
}
As I commented on code, I want to change the Elements XmlElement for each class, depending on what I pass to XmlElementsOverride.
I'm trying to do this with XmlAttributeOverrides when deserializing:
...
XmlReaderSettings xmlReaderSettings = new XmlReaderSettings();
xmlReaderSettings.IgnoreWhitespace = true;
xmlReaderSettings.IgnoreComments = true;
using (XmlReader xmlReader = XmlReader.Create(FilePath))
{
Type rootType = typeof(RefRootType);
XmlElementsOverrideAttribute elementsAttribute = rootType.GetCustomAttribute<XmlElementsOverrideAttribute>(true);
if (elementsAttribute != null)
{
// ElementName passed to XmlElementsOverride on Root class.
string elementsName = elementsAttribute.ElementName;
XmlAttributeOverrides xmlAttributeOverrides = new XmlAttributeOverrides();
xmlAttributeOverrides.Add(typeof(RefRootType), "Elements", new XmlAttributes
{
XmlArray = new XmlArrayAttribute(elementsName),
XmlArrayItems = {
new XmlArrayItemAttribute(typeof(RefElementType))
}
});
XmlSerializer serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(RefRootType), xmlAttributeOverrides);
Root = (RefRootType)serializer.Deserialize(xmlReader);
}
}
...
RefRootType and RefElementType are both generic types passed to this class. RefRootType is RefXMLRoot child class and RefElementType is a RefXMLElement child class.
In resume, I just want to rename the Elements attribute name when deserializing my XMLs.
So, that's it, I'm out of options and I don't know if what I want to do is possible, but I think it is, I'm just missing something.
Any help will be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
I got it, finally!
The reason why the Elements property wasn't changing it's XmlElement attribute name is because I needed to add the override to the base class not the child, like I was doing.
So the solution is:
...
XmlAttributeOverrides xmlAttributeOverrides = new XmlAttributeOverrides();
XmlAttributes xmlAttributes = new XmlAttributes();
xmlAttributes.XmlElements.Add(new XmlElementAttribute(elementsName, typeof(RefElementType)));
xmlAttributeOverrides.Add(typeof(RefXMLRoot<RefElementType>), "Elements", xmlAttributes);
XmlSerializer serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(RefRootType), xmlAttributeOverrides);
Root = (RefRootType)serializer.Deserialize(xmlReader);
...
The main change is at xmlAttributeOverrides.Add(typeof(RefXMLRoot<RefElementType>)... here I have to refer to my base class RefXMLRoot, where Elements property is, not the child RefRootType
Another important change was in xmlAttributes
xmlAttributes.XmlElements.Add(new XmlElementAttribute(elementsName, typeof(RefElementType)))
Changed typeof(List<RefElementType>) to typeof(RefElementType) and instead of xmlAttributes.XmlArray I used xmlAttributes.XmlElements, that makes sense since Elements property is a XmlElement.
I though that the Type passed to typeof was the same as my Elements (List<RefElementType>) but if you have a List<Type> and you want to change this List<> name you just need to pass the Type into the typeof.
So, that's it, if have any questions I'll be happy to answer.
Related
Can I somehow disable rendering of root element of collection?
This class with serialization attributes:
[XmlRoot(ElementName="SHOPITEM", Namespace="")]
public class ShopItem
{
[XmlElement("PRODUCTNAME")]
public string ProductName { get; set; }
[XmlArrayItem("VARIANT")]
public List<ShopItem> Variants { get; set; }
}
generates this XML:
<SHOPITEM xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<PRODUCTNAME>test</PRODUCTNAME>
<Variants>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 1</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 2</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
</Variants>
</SHOPITEM>
I don't want <Variants> element here. What must I do?
Also I don't need xsi and xsd namespaces in root element...
To disable rendering of root element of collection, you must replace the attribute [XmlArrayItem] with [XmlElement] in your code.
For removing the xsi and xsd namespaces, create an XmlSerializerNamespaces instance with an empty namespace and pass it when you need to serialize your object.
Take a look on this example:
[XmlRoot("SHOPITEM")]
public class ShopItem
{
[XmlElement("PRODUCTNAME")]
public string ProductName { get; set; }
[XmlElement("VARIANT")] // was [XmlArrayItem]
public List<ShopItem> Variants { get; set; }
}
// ...
ShopItem item = new ShopItem()
{
ProductName = "test",
Variants = new List<ShopItem>()
{
new ShopItem{ ProductName = "hi 1" },
new ShopItem{ ProductName = "hi 2" }
}
};
// This will remove the xsi/xsd namespaces from serialization
XmlSerializerNamespaces ns = new XmlSerializerNamespaces();
ns.Add("", "");
XmlSerializer ser = new XmlSerializer(typeof(ShopItem));
ser.Serialize(Console.Out, item, ns); // Inform the XmlSerializerNamespaces here
I got this output:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ibm850"?>
<SHOPITEM>
<PRODUCTNAME>test</PRODUCTNAME>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 1</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 2</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
</SHOPITEM>
Replace [XmlArrayItem("VARIANT")] with [XmlElement("VARIANT")].
I don't believe it is possible to remove this element using the default xml serialization (with attributes). If you could do this, then serializing your ShopItem class would result in badly formed xml (no root element) for the object, which is not allowed.
What you can do however, is manually implement IXmlSerializable. This will give you the sort of fine-grained control you a re after.
[Edit] - sorry - misread that you were trying to remove Variants, not SHOPITEM. To remove the List "outer" element, just mark it up with an [XmlElement] attribute rather than an [XmlArrayItem] attribute. This will cause the list entries to just use the specified element name, without wrapping the list in an outer element.
For removing the namespaces, this is controlled by the seriliazer itself, not the markup on the class.
I've just noticed that while I've updated this answer, Rubens Farias has provided an reply that shows you how to eliminate the namespace.
Can I somehow disable rendering of root element of collection?
This class with serialization attributes:
[XmlRoot(ElementName="SHOPITEM", Namespace="")]
public class ShopItem
{
[XmlElement("PRODUCTNAME")]
public string ProductName { get; set; }
[XmlArrayItem("VARIANT")]
public List<ShopItem> Variants { get; set; }
}
generates this XML:
<SHOPITEM xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<PRODUCTNAME>test</PRODUCTNAME>
<Variants>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 1</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 2</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
</Variants>
</SHOPITEM>
I don't want <Variants> element here. What must I do?
Also I don't need xsi and xsd namespaces in root element...
To disable rendering of root element of collection, you must replace the attribute [XmlArrayItem] with [XmlElement] in your code.
For removing the xsi and xsd namespaces, create an XmlSerializerNamespaces instance with an empty namespace and pass it when you need to serialize your object.
Take a look on this example:
[XmlRoot("SHOPITEM")]
public class ShopItem
{
[XmlElement("PRODUCTNAME")]
public string ProductName { get; set; }
[XmlElement("VARIANT")] // was [XmlArrayItem]
public List<ShopItem> Variants { get; set; }
}
// ...
ShopItem item = new ShopItem()
{
ProductName = "test",
Variants = new List<ShopItem>()
{
new ShopItem{ ProductName = "hi 1" },
new ShopItem{ ProductName = "hi 2" }
}
};
// This will remove the xsi/xsd namespaces from serialization
XmlSerializerNamespaces ns = new XmlSerializerNamespaces();
ns.Add("", "");
XmlSerializer ser = new XmlSerializer(typeof(ShopItem));
ser.Serialize(Console.Out, item, ns); // Inform the XmlSerializerNamespaces here
I got this output:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ibm850"?>
<SHOPITEM>
<PRODUCTNAME>test</PRODUCTNAME>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 1</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
<VARIANT>
<PRODUCTNAME>hi 2</PRODUCTNAME>
</VARIANT>
</SHOPITEM>
Replace [XmlArrayItem("VARIANT")] with [XmlElement("VARIANT")].
I don't believe it is possible to remove this element using the default xml serialization (with attributes). If you could do this, then serializing your ShopItem class would result in badly formed xml (no root element) for the object, which is not allowed.
What you can do however, is manually implement IXmlSerializable. This will give you the sort of fine-grained control you a re after.
[Edit] - sorry - misread that you were trying to remove Variants, not SHOPITEM. To remove the List "outer" element, just mark it up with an [XmlElement] attribute rather than an [XmlArrayItem] attribute. This will cause the list entries to just use the specified element name, without wrapping the list in an outer element.
For removing the namespaces, this is controlled by the seriliazer itself, not the markup on the class.
I've just noticed that while I've updated this answer, Rubens Farias has provided an reply that shows you how to eliminate the namespace.
I have a class defined as below:
[XmlRoot("ClassName")]
public class ClassName_0
{
//stuff...
}
I then create a list of ClassName_0 like such:
var myListInstance= new List<ClassName_0>();
This is the code I use to serialize:
var ser = new XmlSerializer(typeof(List<ClassName_0>));
ser.Serialize(aWriterStream, myListInstance);
This is the code I use to deserialize:
var ser = new XmlSerializer(typeof(List<ClassName_0>));
var wrapper = ser.Deserialize(new StringReader(xml));
If I serialize it to xml, the resulting xml looks like below:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<ArrayOfClassName_0 xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<ClassName_0>
<stuff></stuff>
</ClassName_0>
<ClassName_0>
<stuff></stuff>
</ClassName_0>
</ArrayOfClassName_0>
Is there a way to serialize and be able to deserialize the below from/to a list of ClassName_0?
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<ArrayOfClassName xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<ClassName>
<stuff></stuff>
</ClassName>
<ClassName>
<stuff></stuff>
</ClassName>
</ArrayOfClassName>
Thanks!
In your example ClassName isn't the real root.
The real root is your list. So you have to mark the list as the root element.
Your class is just an XmlElement.
try this :
XmlType(TypeName="ClassName")]
public class ClassName_0
{
//stuff...
}
Worked it out, finally, with the help of Jan Peter. XmlRoot was the wrong attribute to put on the class. It was supposed to be XmlType. With XmlType the desired effect is achieved.
You make a root of document tree and this root will contain list of any object.
[XmlRootAttribute("myDocument")]
public class myDocument
{
[XmlArrayAttribute]
publict ClassName[] ArrayOfClassName {get;set;}
}
[XmlType(TypeName="ClassName")]
public class ClassName
{
public string stuff {get;set;}
}
I'm trying to figure out how to serialize the following class into XML (in a specific way, see below):
[XmlRoot("Farm")]
public class Farm
{
[XmlArray]
[XmlArrayItem("Person", typeof(Person))]
[XmlArrayItem("Dog", typeof(Dog))]
public List<Animal> Animals { get; set; }
}
(Assume that Dog and Person both derive from Animal, and they both have a Name property which is decorated with [XmlAttribute("Name")].)
I need to be able to create this object:
var myFarm = new Farm
{
Animals = new List<Animal> {
new Person { Name = "Bob" },
new Dog { Name = "Fido" }
}
};
...and have it serialize to the following document:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<Farm>
<Person Name="Bob"/>
<Dog Name="Fido"/>
</Farm>
But, when I serialize myFarm (result outputs to console) like this:
var serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Farm));
var namespaces = new XmlSerializerNamespaces();
namespaces.Add("", "");
serializer.Serialize(System.Console.Out, myFarm, namespaces);
...the result is this:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<Farm>
<Animals>
<Person Name="Bob"/>
<Dog Name="Fido"/>
</Animals>
</Farm>
Notice the extra unwanted Animals element. How do I get rid of this? Changing the XML schema is not an option, but changing the code is. I'd really just like to be able to get around this problem and am hoping someone knows of an easy fix (or knows for a fact that there is not an easy fix).
Thanks!
Use the following attributes instead:
[XmlRoot("Farm")]
public class Farm
{
[XmlElement("Person", typeof(Person))]
[XmlElement("Dog", typeof(Dog))]
public List<Animal> Items { get; set; }
}
I have xml file:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LabelTypesCollection xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance="xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<LabelTypes>
<LabelType>
<Name>LabelTypeProduct</Name>
</LabelType>
<LabelType>
<Name>LabelTypeClient</Name>
</LabelType>
</LabelTypes>
</LabelTypesCollection>
And 2 c# classes:
[Serializable]
[XmlRoot("LabelTypesCollection")]
public class LabelTypesCollection
{
private static string _labelTypesCollectionPath = Path.Combine(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.ApplicationData), Path.Combine(Program.ProgramName, "LabelTypesCollection.xml"));
[XmlArray("LabelTypes", ElementName="LabelType")]
public List<LabelType> LabelTypes { get; set; }
public static LabelTypesCollection LoadAllLabelTypes()
{
FileInfo fi = new FileInfo(_labelTypesCollectionPath);
if (!fi.Exists)
{
Logger.WriteLog("Could not find size_types_collection.xml file.", new Exception("Could not find size_types_collection.xml file."));
return new LabelTypesCollection();
}
try
{
using (FileStream fs = fi.OpenRead())
{
XmlSerializer serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(LabelTypesCollection));
LabelTypesCollection labelTypesCollection = (LabelTypesCollection)serializer.Deserialize(fs);
return labelTypesCollection;
}
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
Logger.WriteLog("Error during loading LabelTypesCollection", ex);
return null;
}
}
}
[Serializable]
public class LabelType
{
[XmlElement("Name")]
public string Name { get; set; }
[XmlIgnore]
public string TranslatedName
{
get
{
string translated = Common.Resources.GetValue(Name);
return (translated == null) ? Name : translated;
}
}
}
And when I call:
LabelTypesCollection.LoadAllLabelTypes();
I get LabelTypeCollection object with empty LabelTypes list. There is no error or anything. Could anyone point me to the problem?
Change this
[XmlArray("LabelTypes", ElementName="LabelType")]
to this
[XmlArray]
The ElementName of an XmlArrayAttribute specifies the element name of the container, and is actually what you specify in the first parameter to the ctor! So the ctor you have says "this class serializes as a container named LabelTypes; no wait actually I want the container to be named LabelType". The named parameter is overwriting what the first unnamed parameter says.
And in fact, since you want the container element to be named LabelTypes, which is what the member is actually called, you don't need to specify it at all.
You may have been thinking of XmlArrayItemAttribute, which controls what the individual members of a serialized collection are named - but you don't need that here either.
My usual approach for working out xml serializer stuff is to build objects manually then look at the xml they serialize to. In this case, using the code you currently have produces xml like this:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?>
<LabelTypesCollection xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<LabelType>
<LabelType>
<Name>one</Name>
</LabelType>
<LabelType>
<Name>two</Name>
</LabelType>
</LabelType>
</LabelTypesCollection>
which is what tipped me off to the incorrect LabelType specifier.
Note that you also don't need the XmlRoot on LabelTypesCollection, or the XmlElement on Name, since you are just specifying what the xml serializer will come up with anyway.
Here's a suggestion.
Write a small test program that creates an instance of LabelTypesCollection, and adds some LabelType objects into it.
Then use an XmlSerializer to write the object to a file, and look at the Xml you get, to ensure that your input Xml is in the correct schema.
Maybe there's something wrong with one of your Xml elements.
I really think you get an empty list because your code can't find the xml file. Also try instantiating your list. If you have the xml path correctly.
public List<LabelType> LabelTypes = new List<LabelType>();