I have a c# project that serializes a list of objects out to xml.
[Serializable]
[XmlRoot]
public class collection {
private List<item> _items = new List<item>();
[XmlElement("item")]
public List<item> items {
get { return _items; }
}
}
[Serializable]
public class item {
}
the xml output is then
<collection>
<item/>
<item/>
<item/>
</collection>
what I would like is to add the option of folders&subfolders so items can be grouped together while still being able to go in the root node.
<collection>
<item/>
<item/>
<folder>
<item/>
<item/>
</folder>
<item/>
<item/>
<folder>
<item/>
<item/>
<folder>
<item/>
<item/>
</folder>
</folder>
<item/>
</collection>
Can anyone advise a clean way of doing this while continuing to generate the xml output using serialised objects?
This has to be the class structure.
public class Folder2
{
}
public class Folder
{
public Folder2 folder { get; set; }
}
public class Collection
{
public List<Folder> folder { get; set; }
}
public class RootObject
{
public Collection collection { get; set; }
}
After a bit of trial and error I managed to get the functionality I was after.
[Serializable]
[XmlRoot]
public class collection {
private List<treeEntry> _entries = new List<treeEntry>();
[XmlElement("item", typeof(item))]
[XmlElement("folder", typeof(folder))]
public List<treeEntry> entries {
get { return _entries; }
}
}
public abstract class treeEntry { }
[Serializable]
public class folder : treeEntry {
private List<treeEntry> _entries = new List<treeEntry>();
public folder() { }
[XmlAttribute]
public string name { get; set; }
[XmlElement("item", typeof(item))]
[XmlElement("folder", typeof(folder))]
public List<treeEntry> entries {
get { return _entries; }
}
}
[Serializable]
public class item : treeEntry { }
public class mytest {
public static void main() {
collection col = new collection();
col.entries.Add(new item());
col.entries.Add(new item());
var folder1 = new folder() { name = "someFolder" };
folder1.entries.Add(new item());
var folder2 = new folder() { name = "anotherFolder" };
folder1.entries.Add(folder2);
folder1.entries.Add(new item());
folder2.entries.Add(new item());
col.entries.Add(folder1);
col.entries.Add(new folder());
col.entries.Add(new item());
XmlSerializer sers = new XmlSerializer(typeof(collection));
//serialise
using (StreamWriter sw = new StreamWriter("testoutput.xml", false, Encoding.UTF8)) {
XmlWriter xw = new XmlTextWriter(sw);
sers.Serialize(xw, col);
}
//deserialise
FileStream fs = new FileStream("testoutput.xml", FileMode.Open);
XmlReader reader = XmlReader.Create(fs);
collection newcol = (collection)sers.Deserialize(reader);
//output to console
sers.Serialize(Console.Out, newcol);
}
}
which produced the desired output
<collection>
<item />
<item />
<folder name="someFolder">
<item />
<folder name="anotherFolder">
<item />
</folder>
<item />
</folder>
<folder />
<item />
</collection>
Related
Here is my two classes: the class Characteristic and Definition :
[DataContract]
public class Characteristic
{
[DataMember]
public Definition Definition { get; set; }
}
[Serializable]
public class Definition
{
[XmlAttribute]
public int id;
[XmlAttribute]
public stringName;
}
and this is my implementation :
Characteristic lstChars = new Characteristic()
{
Definition = new Definition()
{
id = Dimension.ID,
name = Dimension.Name
}
};
I get this result:
<Characteristic>
<Definition>
<id>6</id>
<name>ACTIVITY</name>
</Definition>
And my objectif is to get this result:
<Characteristic>
<Definition id="6" Name= "ACTIVITY" />
In order to serialize it, you can use the following ways:
To serialize it into a string:
string result;
using (var writer = new StringWriter())
{
new XmlSerializer(typeof(Characteristic)).Serialize(writer, lstChars);
result = writer.ToString();
}
To serialize and store it on a file:
using (var writer = new StreamWriter(xmlFilePath))
{
new XmlSerializer(typeof(Characteristic)).Serialize(writer, lstChars);
}
When generating an XML from this code:
internal class Program
{
public static void Main(string[] args)
{
using (StreamWriter myWriter = new StreamWriter(#"C:\Users\tomas\Documents\foo.xml", false))
{
var myFoo = new Foo();
myFoo.Bar = new BarChildOne();
XmlSerializer mySerializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Foo));
mySerializer.Serialize(myWriter, myFoo);
}
}
}
public class Foo
{
public BarBase Bar { get; set; }
}
[XmlInclude(typeof(BarChildOne))]
[XmlInclude(typeof(BarChildTwo))]
public abstract class BarBase
{
public string Name { get; set; }
}
[XmlRoot(ElementName = "BarChildOne")]
public class BarChildOne : BarBase
{
public BarChildOne()
{
this.Name = "BarChildOne";
}
}
[XmlRoot(ElementName = "BarChildTwo")]
public class BarChildTwo : BarBase
{
public BarChildTwo()
{
this.Name = "BarChildTwo";
}
}
An XML like this is created:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Foo xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<Bar xsi:type="BarChildOne">
<Name>BarChildOne</Name>
</Bar>
</Foo>
However, I want the element name to be BarChildOne, as defined by in the child class, and not Bar.
Current: <Bar xsi:type="BarChildOne">
Expected: <BarChildOne>
If the derived class is BarChildTwo then the expected name is <BarChildTwo>.
Is this possible with the built-in XML serializer?
Update the Variable name inside Foo:
public class Foo
{
public BarBase BarChildOne { get; set; }
}
and update the referenced variable's name inside the serialization:
using (StreamWriter myWriter = new StreamWriter(#"C:\temp\foo.xml", false))
{
var myFoo = new Foo();
myFoo.BarChildOne/**/ = new BarChildOne();
XmlSerializer mySerializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Foo));
mySerializer.Serialize(myWriter, myFoo);
}
yields the requested result:
I want the element name to be BarChildOne, as defined in the child class, and not Bar.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Foo xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<BarChildOne xsi:type="BarChildOne">
<Name>BarChildOne</Name>
</BarChildOne>
</Foo>
I have a class that I am serializing using XmlSerializer. In addition to other properties, I need to add a chunk of pre-built xml to the object. I already asked how to handle that chuck of xml in this post: How to remove empty namespace attribute on manually added xml string when serializing object?
Now I need to add an attribute to the property that contains the xml string. I understand how to add an attribute to a class but not to a property. If I create a new class to hold the attribute, I get an extra hierarchy in my output.
Here is my simplified code:
public class Book
{
public string Title { get; set; }
public string Author { get; set; }
public XmlElement Extension { get; set; }
public Book()
{
}
public void AddExtension()
{
string xmlString = "<AdditionalInfo xmlns=\"http://www.somenamespace.com\">" +
"<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>" +
"</AdditionalInfo>";
this.Extension = GetElement(xmlString);
}
public static XmlElement GetElement(string xml)
{
XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
doc.LoadXml(xml);
return doc.DocumentElement;
}
}
static void Main(string[] args)
{
TestSerialization p = new TestSerialization();
Book bookOne = new Book();
bookOne.Title = "How to Fix Code";
bookOne.Author = "Dee Bugger";
bookOne.AddExtension();
System.Xml.Serialization.XmlSerializer serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Book), "http://www.somenamespace.com");
using (var writer = new StreamWriter("C:\\BookReport.xml"))
using (var xmlWriter = XmlWriter.Create(writer, new XmlWriterSettings { Indent = true }))
{
serializer.Serialize(xmlWriter, bookOne);
}
}
It generates the following output:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Book xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<Title>How to Fix Code</Title>
<Author>Dee Bugger</Author>
<Extension>
<AdditionalInfo xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>
</AdditionalInfo>
</Extension>
</Book>
Now I need to add an attribute to Extension to make the Extension output look like:
...
<Extension Modifier="ABC">
<AdditionalInfo xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>
</AdditionalInfo>
</Extension>
Is there a way to change the Book class to do this? I tried to create an Extension class to hold the Modifier attribute and the XmlElement of the xml string but that resulted in an extra level:
public class Extension
{
[XmlAttribute]
public string Modifier { get; set; }
[XmlElementAttribute("Extension")]
public XmlElement ExtensionAsElement { get; set; }
public Extension()
{
}
public Extension(XmlElement extensionAsElement)
{
this.Modifier = "ABC";
this.ExtensionAsElement = extensionAsElement;
}
}
public class Book
{
public string Title { get; set; }
public string Author { get; set; }
[XmlElementAttribute("Extension")]
public Extension ExtensionObj { get; set; }
public Book()
{
}
public void AddExtension()
{
string xmlString = "<AdditionalInfo xmlns=\"http://www.somenamespace.com\">" +
"<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>" +
"</AdditionalInfo>";
this.ExtensionObj = new Extension(GetElement(xmlString));
}
public static XmlElement GetElement(string xml)
{
XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
doc.LoadXml(xml);
return doc.DocumentElement;
}
}
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Book xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<Title>How to Fix Code</Title>
<Author>Dee Bugger</Author>
<Extension Modifier="ABC">
<Extension>
<AdditionalInfo xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>
</AdditionalInfo>
</Extension>
</Extension>
</Book>
Note: this is an overly simplified example of my code, the Book class is not my root. I only need to serialize, not deserialize.
You can use [XmlAnyElement("Extension")] to specify that your Extension property should be inserted as-is into the XML stream as the element <Extension> itself, rather than as a child of an element of that name. Having done so, you will be able to set attributes on the element itself using SetAttribute() and GetAttribute().
Thus your Book class becomes something like:
public class Book
{
public string Title { get; set; }
public string Author { get; set; }
[XmlAnyElement("Extension")]
public XmlElement Extension { get; set; }
public Book()
{
this.Extension = new XmlDocument().CreateElement("Extension");
}
public Book AddExtension()
{
string innerXmlString = "<AdditionalInfo xmlns=\"http://www.somenamespace.com\">" +
"<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>" +
"</AdditionalInfo>";
if (Extension == null)
// Since Extension is marked with [XmlAnyElement("Extension")], its value must
// be an XmlElement named "Extension". Its InnerXml can be anything.
Extension = new XmlDocument().CreateElement("Extension");
Extension.InnerXml = innerXmlString;
return this;
}
const string ModifierName = "Modifier";
[XmlIgnore]
public string Modifier
{
get
{
if (Extension == null)
return null;
return Extension.GetAttribute(ModifierName);
}
set
{
if (Extension == null)
AddExtension();
if (value == null)
Extension.RemoveAttribute(ModifierName);
else
Extension.SetAttribute(ModifierName, value);
}
}
}
And creating XML from the following:
var bookOne = new Book { Title = "How to Fix Code", Author = "Dee Bugger", Modifier = "AAA" }
.AddExtension();
Produces the result:
<Book xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<Title>How to Fix Code</Title>
<Author>Dee Bugger</Author>
<Extension Modifier="AAA">
<AdditionalInfo xmlns="http://www.somenamespace.com">
<SpecialHandling>Some Value</SpecialHandling>
</AdditionalInfo>
</Extension>
</Book>
I want to create object that after serialize to xml should looks like:
<List>
<Map>
<Entry Key="1" Value="ASD" />
</Map>
<Map>
<Entry Key="2" Value="DFE" />
</Map>
</List>
Instead of this my result is:
<List>
<Map>
<Entry Key="1" Value="ASD" />
<Entry Key="2" Value="DFE" />
</Map>
</List>
My piece of code:
public partial class List {
private Map[] mapField;
[System.Xml.Serialization.XmlArrayAttribute(Form=System.Xml.Schema.XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
[System.Xml.Serialization.XmlArrayItemAttribute("Entry", typeof(Map), Form=System.Xml.Schema.XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable=false)]
public Map[] Map {
get {
return this.mapField;
}
set {
this.mapField = value;
}
}
public partial class MapTypeEntry
{
private string keyField;
private string valueField;
[System.Xml.Serialization.XmlAttributeAttribute()]
public string Key {
get {
return this.keyField;
}
set {
this.keyField = value;
}
}
[System.Xml.Serialization.XmlAttributeAttribute()]
public string Value {
get {
return this.valueField;
}
set {
this.valueField = value;
}
}
}
What I'm doing wrong?
I think I did typo somewhere, but I can't find where.
Maybe there is problem with xml attributes?
Maytbe this shouldn't be xmlArray item?
EDIT:
Complete code:
var mapEntry = new Map();
mapEntry.Key = "1";
mapEntry.Value = "ASD";
mapEntries.Add(mapEntry);
mapEntry = new Map();
mapEntry.Key = "2";
mapEntry.Value = "DFE";
mapEntries.Add(mapEntry);
var exampleType = new List();
List.Map = mapEntries.ToArray();
You need to change model as I implemented below (just simple exmple).
namespace TestApp
{
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Xml.Schema;
using System.Xml.Serialization;
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
var list = new List
{
Map = new[]
{
new Entry {EntryItem = new EntryItem {Key = "1", Value = "ASD"}},
new Entry {EntryItem = new EntryItem {Key = "2", Value = "DFE"}}
}
};
Console.Write(Serialize(list));
Console.ReadKey();
}
private static string Serialize(List list)
{
var xmlSerializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof (List));
var stringWriter = new StringWriter();
xmlSerializer.Serialize(stringWriter, list);
return stringWriter.ToString();
}
}
[XmlRoot(ElementName = "Root")]
public partial class List
{
[XmlArray(ElementName = "List")]
[XmlArrayItem("Map", typeof (Entry), Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false)]
public Entry[] Map { get; set; }
}
public class Entry
{
[XmlElement("Entry")]
public EntryItem EntryItem { get; set; }
}
public class EntryItem
{
[XmlAttribute]
public string Key { get; set; }
[XmlAttribute]
public string Value { get; set; }
}
}
So it creates XML:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?>
<Root xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<List>
<Map>
<Entry Key="1" Value="ASD" />
</Map>
<Map>
<Entry Key="2" Value="DFE" />
</Map>
</List>
</Root>
Here's what your class List should look :
public partial class List
{
private Map[] mapField;
[XmlElement("Map", typeof(Map), Form = System.Xml.Schema.XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false)]
public Map[] Map
{
get
{
return this.mapField;
}
set
{
this.mapField = value;
}
}
[...]
}
And for your Map class
public class Map
{
[XmlElement("Entry")]
public KVPair Item { get; set; }
}
And the one I called KVPair
public class KVPair
{
[XmlAttribute()]
public string Key { get; set; }
[XmlAttribute()]
public string Value { get; set; }
}
the Xml Produced is :
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<List xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
<Map>
<Entry Key="1" Value="ASD" />
</Map>
<Map>
<Entry Key="2" Value="DFE" />
</Map>
</List>
You should avoid using class name frequently used such as List. If you want to call it with a different name, use XmlRootAttribute to keep "List" for your xml file.
I am trying to figure out a way to specify the element name for serialization when I inherit from List
class
{
[XmlRoot(ElementName = "Foo")]
public class Widget
{
public int ID { get; set; }
}
[XmlRoot(ElementName = "Foos")]
public class WidgetList : List<Widget>
{
}
}
public static XElement GetXElement(object obj)
{
using (var memoryStream = new MemoryStream())
{
using (TextWriter streamWriter = new StreamWriter(memoryStream))
{
var xmlSerializer = new XmlSerializer(obj.GetType());
XmlSerializerNamespaces ns = new XmlSerializerNamespaces();
ns.Add("dn", "http://defaultnamespace");
xmlSerializer.Serialize(streamWriter, obj, ns);
return XElement.Parse(Encoding.ASCII.GetString(memoryStream.ToArray()));
}
}
}
static void Main(string[] args)
{
WidgetList list = new WidgetList();
list.Add(new Widget { ID = 0 });
list.Add(new Widget { ID = 1 });
XElement listElement = GetXElement(list);
Console.WriteLine(listElement.ToString());
Console.ReadKey();
}
Result:
<Foos xmlns:dn="http://defaultnamespace">
<Widget>
<ID>0</ID>
</Widget>
<Widget>
<ID>1</ID>
</Widget>
</Foos>
Desired Result:
<Foos xmlns:dn="http://defaultnamespace">
<Foo>
<ID>0</ID>
</Foo>
<Foo>
<ID>1</ID>
</Foo>
</Foos>
I was mostly wondering if I could modify "GetXElement" to respect the XmlRoot attribute of "Widget", but I am open to other ideas as long as I can still inherit from list. I do not like the solution given here: Serialize a generic collection specifying element names for items in the collection
[XmlType(TypeName = "Foo")]
[Serializable]
public class Widget
{
public int ID { get; set; }
}