I have a JsonConverter that, depending on an instance specific flag, needs to either
run custom serialization logic
run the default Json.NET serialization logic
How can the default Json.NET serialization logic be ran from a JsonConverter?
Thanks
Here is an example. Say your class to serialize looks like this:
class Foo
{
public bool IsSpecial { get; set; }
public string A { get; set; }
public string B { get; set; }
public string C { get; set; }
}
The IsSpecial flag is used to control whether we do something special in the converter or just let things serialize naturally. You can write your converter like this:
class FooConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(Foo).IsAssignableFrom(objectType);
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
Foo foo = (Foo)value;
JObject jo;
if (foo.IsSpecial)
{
// special serialization logic based on instance-specific flag
jo = new JObject();
jo.Add("names", string.Join(", ", new string[] { foo.A, foo.B, foo.C }));
}
else
{
// normal serialization
jo = JObject.FromObject(foo);
}
jo.WriteTo(writer);
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
}
Then, to use the converter, pass an instance of it to the SerializeObject method (e.g. in the settings). (Do NOT decorate the target class with a JsonConverter attribute, or this will result in an infinite recursive loop when you serialize.)
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
List<Foo> foos = new List<Foo>
{
new Foo
{
A = "Moe",
B = "Larry",
C = "Curly",
IsSpecial = false
},
new Foo
{
A = "Huey",
B = "Dewey",
C = "Louie",
IsSpecial = true
},
};
JsonSerializerSettings settings = new JsonSerializerSettings();
settings.Converters.Add(new FooConverter());
settings.Formatting = Formatting.Indented;
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(foos, settings);
Console.WriteLine(json);
}
}
Output:
[
{
"IsSpecial": false,
"A": "Moe",
"B": "Larry",
"C": "Curly"
},
{
"names": "Huey, Dewey, Louie"
}
]
You can change the CanWrite property to disable a custom serializer. This won't work right if the object can contain children of the same type or if you are serializing in more than one thread.
class FooConverter : JsonConverter
{
bool _canWrite = true;
public override bool CanWrite
{
get { return _canWrite;}
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
Foo foo = (Foo)value;
JObject jo;
if (foo.IsSpecial)
{
// special serialization logic based on instance-specific flag
jo = new JObject();
jo.Add("names", string.Join(", ", new string[] { foo.A, foo.B, foo.C }));
}
else
{
// normal serialization
_canWrite = false;
jo = JObject.FromObject(foo);
_canWrite = true;
}
jo.WriteTo(writer);
}
}
Related
Since I had to search forever for an answer, that would just work as is, I will provide an example here, when you serialize and deserialize an object with a composite pattern structure.
My problem was deserializing this kind of class structure (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composite_pattern):
abstract class BaseClass
{
public int Id { get; set; }
}
class Leaf : BaseClass
{
public string Foo { get; set; }
}
class Composite : BaseClass
{
public List<BaseClass> ClassList = new List<BaseClass>();
}
Serialization worked by using:
var composite = new Composite();
JsonConvert.SerializeObject(composite, Formatting.Indented);
Deserialziation didn't work out of box.
Solution for deserialization is to build a CustomConverter:
public class BaseClassJsonConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(BaseClass) == objectType;
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType,
object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
try
{
var jObject = JObject.Load(reader);
var jsonSerializerSettings = new JsonSerializerSettings();
jsonSerializerSettings.Converters.Add(new BaseClassJsonConverter());
if (jObject.ContainsKey("Foo"))
return JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<Leaf>(jObject.ToString(), jsonSerializerSettings);
else if (jObject.ContainsKey("ClassList"))
return JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<Composite>(jObject.ToString(), jsonSerializerSettings);
else
throw new System.SystemException("Class not implemented");
return null;
}
catch (JsonReaderException)
{
return null;
}
}
public override bool CanWrite
{
get { return false; }
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value,
JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
}
Key difference to other answers I found is that they were missing to put the settings in the ReadJson into the SeserialzieObject again, that way it couldn't handle the deserialization of a recursive structure (Deserializing JSON to abstract class).
Now you either decorate your BaseClass with: [JsonConverter(typeof(BaseConverter))]
Or you call the deserialization with the converter in the settings:
var jsonSerializerSettings = new JsonSerializerSettings();
jsonSerializerSettings.Converters.Add(new BaseClassJsonConverter());
JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<BaseClass>(jsonString, jsonSerializerSettings);
Consider
public class InQuestion<TType>
{
// JsonConverter(typeof CustomConverter))
public Task<TType> toConvert { get; set; }
}
How can I (de)serialize this class with json.net?
What I think I actually want to serialize is the underlying Task< T >.Result, which can then be deserialized with Task< T >.FromResult(). If I am to use custom JsonConverter, I cannot pass generic TType through Attribute, to reconstruct (or retrieve) TType object in the JsonConverter. Hence I'm stuck.
Question came to be from this code:
public class Program
{
public class InQuestion<TType>
{
public Task<TType> toConvert { get; set; }
}
public class Result
{
public int value { get; set; }
}
public static async Task Main()
{
var questionable = new InQuestion<Result>();
questionable.toConvert = Task.Run(async () => new Result { value = 42 });
await questionable.toConvert;
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(questionable);
Debug.WriteLine(json);
InQuestion<Result> back = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject(json, typeof(InQuestion<Result>)) as InQuestion<Result>;
Debug.Assert(back?.toConvert?.Result?.value == 42);
}
}
which, surprisingly to me, halts, during the call to JsonConvert.DeserializeObject. https://github.com/JamesNK/Newtonsoft.Json/issues/1886 talks about the issue and recommends reasonable "Don't ever serialize/deserialize task.", but doesn't actually advice how to serialize the underlying Task< T >.Result.
A Task is a promise of a future value, and of course you cannot serialize a value that has yet to be provided.
Because the InQuestion object holds a Task member, you cannot serialize and deserialize the InQuestion object.
The workaround is to serialize the result, and reconstruct the InQuestion object after deserialization.
public static async Task Main()
{
var questionable = new InQuestion<Result>();
questionable.toConvert = Task.Run(async () => new Result { value = 42 });
Result result = await questionable.toConvert;
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(result);
Result back = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject(json, typeof<Result>) as Result;
InQuestion<Result> reconstructed = new InQuestion<Result>()
{
toConvert = Task.FromResult(back)
};
}
I have found two solutions to this problem.
From the Add support for generic JsonConverter instantiation:
[JsonConverter(typeof(InQuestionConverter<>))]
public class InQuestion<TResult>
{
public Task<TResult> toConvert { get; set; }
}
public class Result
{
public int value { get; set; }
public string text { get; set; }
public override bool Equals(object obj)
{
return obj is Result result &&
value == result.value &&
text == result.text;
}
}
public class InQuestionConverter<TResult> : JsonConverter<InQuestion<TResult>>
{
public override InQuestion<TResult> ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, InQuestion<TResult> existingValue, bool hasExistingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (hasExistingValue)
existingValue.toConvert = Task.FromResult(serializer.Deserialize<TResult>(reader));
else
existingValue = new InQuestion<TResult>
{
toConvert = Task.FromResult(serializer.Deserialize<TResult>(reader))
};
return existingValue;
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, InQuestion<TResult> value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
serializer.Serialize(writer, value.toConvert.Result, typeof(TResult));
}
}
public sealed class CustomContractResolver : DefaultContractResolver
{
protected override JsonConverter ResolveContractConverter(Type objectType)
{
var typeInfo = objectType.GetTypeInfo();
if (typeInfo.IsGenericType && !typeInfo.IsGenericTypeDefinition)
{
var jsonConverterAttribute = typeInfo.GetCustomAttribute<JsonConverterAttribute>();
if (jsonConverterAttribute != null && jsonConverterAttribute.ConverterType.GetTypeInfo().IsGenericTypeDefinition)
{
Type t = jsonConverterAttribute.ConverterType.MakeGenericType(typeInfo.GenericTypeArguments);
object[] parameters = jsonConverterAttribute.ConverterParameters;
return (JsonConverter)Activator.CreateInstance(t, parameters);
}
}
return base.ResolveContractConverter(objectType);
}
}
public static void Main()
{
var questionable = new InQuestion<Result>();
questionable.toConvert = Task.Run(async () => { return new Result { value = 42, text = "fox" }; });
questionable.toConvert.Wait();
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(questionable, Formatting.None, new JsonSerializerSettings { ContractResolver = new CustomContractResolver() });
InQuestion<Result> back = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject(json, typeof(InQuestion<Result>), new JsonSerializerSettings { ContractResolver = new CustomContractResolver() }) as InQuestion<Result>;
Debug.Assert(back.toConvert.Result.Equals(questionable.toConvert.Result));
return;
}
Enables a custom ContractResolver which will point to correct generic instantiation of JsonConverter<TResult>, in which serialization is straightforward. This requires configuring JsonSerializerSettings and providing serialization for the entire InQuestion class (note that converter doesn't check for Task.IsCompleted in this sample).
Alternatively, using JsonConverterAttribute just on properties of type Task<T> and relying on reflection to retrieve TResult type from non-generic Converter:
public class InQuestion<TResult>
{
[JsonConverter(typeof(FromTaskOfTConverter))]
public Task<TResult> toConvert { get; set; }
}
public class FromTaskOfTConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return IsDerivedFromTaskOfT(objectType);
}
static bool IsDerivedFromTaskOfT(Type type)
{
while (type.BaseType != typeof(object))
{
if (type.IsGenericType && type.GetGenericTypeDefinition() == typeof(Task<>))
return true;
type = type.BaseType;
}
return false;
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
Debug.Assert(IsDerivedFromTaskOfT(objectType));
Type TResult = objectType.GetGenericArguments()[0];
object ResultValue = serializer.Deserialize(reader, TResult);
return typeof(Task).GetMethod("FromResult").MakeGenericMethod(TResult).Invoke(null, new[] { ResultValue });
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
Type objectType = value.GetType();
Debug.Assert(IsDerivedFromTaskOfT(objectType));
Type TResult = objectType.GetGenericArguments()[0];
Type TaskOfTResult = typeof(Task<>).MakeGenericType(TResult);
if ((bool)TaskOfTResult.GetProperty("IsCompleted").GetValue(value) == true)
{
object ResultValue = TaskOfTResult.GetProperty("Result").GetValue(value);
serializer.Serialize(writer, ResultValue, TResult);
}
else
{
serializer.Serialize(writer, Activator.CreateInstance(TResult));
}
}
}
public static void Main()
{
var questionable = new InQuestion<Result>();
questionable.toConvert = Task.Run(async () => { return new Result { value = 42, text = "fox" }; });
questionable.toConvert.Wait();
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(questionable);
InQuestion<Result> back = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject(json, typeof(InQuestion<Result>)) as InQuestion<Result>;
Debug.Assert(back.toConvert.Result.Equals(questionable.toConvert.Result));
return;
}
With all that, I won't mark this accepted, since I lack understanding in both generics reflection and json.net.
I always had the impression that the JSON serializer actually traverses your entire object's tree, and executes the custom JsonConverter's WriteJson function on each interface-typed object that it comes across - not so.
I have the following classes and interfaces:
public interface IAnimal
{
string Name { get; set; }
string Speak();
List<IAnimal> Children { get; set; }
}
public class Cat : IAnimal
{
public string Name { get; set; }
public List<IAnimal> Children { get; set; }
public Cat()
{
Children = new List<IAnimal>();
}
public Cat(string name="") : this()
{
Name = name;
}
public string Speak()
{
return "Meow";
}
}
public class Dog : IAnimal
{
public string Name { get; set; }
public List<IAnimal> Children { get; set; }
public Dog()
{
Children = new List<IAnimal>();
}
public Dog(string name="") : this()
{
Name = name;
}
public string Speak()
{
return "Arf";
}
}
To avoid the $type property in the JSON, I've written a custom JsonConverter class, whose WriteJson is
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
JToken t = JToken.FromObject(value);
if (t.Type != JTokenType.Object)
{
t.WriteTo(writer);
}
else
{
IAnimal animal = value as IAnimal;
JObject o = (JObject)t;
if (animal != null)
{
if (animal is Dog)
{
o.AddFirst(new JProperty("type", "Dog"));
//o.Find
}
else if (animal is Cat)
{
o.AddFirst(new JProperty("type", "Cat"));
}
foreach(IAnimal childAnimal in animal.Children)
{
// ???
}
o.WriteTo(writer);
}
}
}
In this example, yes, a dog can have cats for children and vice-versa. In the converter, I want to insert the "type" property so that it saves that to the serialization. I have the following setup. (Zoo has only a name and a list of IAnimals. I didn't include it here for brevity and laziness ;))
Zoo hardcodedZoo = new Zoo()
{ Name = "My Zoo",
Animals = new List<IAnimal> { new Dog("Ruff"), new Cat("Cleo"),
new Dog("Rover"){
Children = new List<IAnimal>{ new Dog("Fido"), new Dog("Fluffy")}
} }
};
JsonSerializerSettings settings = new JsonSerializerSettings(){
ContractResolver = new CamelCasePropertyNamesContractResolver() ,
Formatting = Formatting.Indented
};
settings.Converters.Add(new AnimalsConverter());
string serializedHardCodedZoo = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(hardcodedZoo, settings);
serializedHardCodedZoo has the following output after serialization:
{
"name": "My Zoo",
"animals": [
{
"type": "Dog",
"Name": "Ruff",
"Children": []
},
{
"type": "Cat",
"Name": "Cleo",
"Children": []
},
{
"type": "Dog",
"Name": "Rover",
"Children": [
{
"Name": "Fido",
"Children": []
},
{
"Name": "Fluffy",
"Children": []
}
]
}
]
}
The type property shows up on Ruff, Cleo, and Rover, but not for Fido and Fluffy. I guess the WriteJson isn't called recursively. How do I get that type property there?
As an aside, why does it not camel-case IAnimals like I expect it to?
The reason that your converter is not getting applied to your child objects is because JToken.FromObject() uses a new instance of the serializer internally, which does not know about your converter. There is an overload that allows you to pass in the serializer, but if you do so here you will have another problem: since you are inside a converter and you are using JToken.FromObject() to try to serialize the parent object, you will get into an infinite recursive loop. (JToken.FromObject() calls the serializer, which calls your converter, which calls JToken.FromObject(), etc.)
To get around this problem, you must handle the parent object manually. You can do this without much trouble using a bit of reflection to enumerate the parent properties:
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
JObject jo = new JObject();
Type type = value.GetType();
jo.Add("type", type.Name);
foreach (PropertyInfo prop in type.GetProperties())
{
if (prop.CanRead)
{
object propVal = prop.GetValue(value, null);
if (propVal != null)
{
jo.Add(prop.Name, JToken.FromObject(propVal, serializer));
}
}
}
jo.WriteTo(writer);
}
Fiddle: https://dotnetfiddle.net/sVWsE4
Here's an idea, instead of doing the reflection on every property, iterate through the normally serialized JObject and then changed the token of properties you're interested in.
That way you can still leverage all the ''JsonIgnore'' attributes and other attractive features built-in.
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
JToken jToken = JToken.FromObject(value);
if (jToken.Type == JTokenType.Object)
{
JObject jObject = (JObject)jToken;
...
AddRemoveSerializedProperties(jObject, val);
...
}
...
}
And then
private void AddRemoveSerializedProperties(JObject jObject, MahMan baseContract)
{
jObject.AddFirst(....);
foreach (KeyValuePair<string, JToken> propertyJToken in jObject)
{
if (propertyJToken.Value.Type != JTokenType.Object)
continue;
JToken nestedJObject = propertyJToken.Value;
PropertyInfo clrProperty = baseContract.GetType().GetProperty(propertyJToken.Key);
MahMan nestedObjectValue = clrProperty.GetValue(baseContract) as MahMan;
if(nestedObj != null)
AddRemoveSerializedProperties((JObject)nestedJObject, nestedObjectValue);
}
}
I had this issue using two custom converters for a parent and child type. A simpler method I found is that since an overload of JToken.FromObject() takes a serializer as a parameter, you can pass along the serializer you were given in WriteJson(). However you need to remove your converter from the serializer to avoid a recursive call to it (but add it back in after):
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
serializer.Converters.Remove(this);
JToken jToken = JToken.FromObject(value, serializer);
serializer.Converters.Add(this);
// Perform any necessary conversions on the object returned
}
Here is a hacky solution to your problem that gets the work done and looks tidy.
public class MyJsonConverter : JsonConverter
{
public const string TypePropertyName = "type";
private bool _dormant = false;
/// <summary>
/// A hack is involved:
/// " JToken.FromObject(value, serializer); " creates amn infinite loop in normal circumstances
/// for that reason before calling it "_dormant = true;" is called.
/// the result is that this JsonConverter will reply false to exactly one "CanConvert()" call.
/// this gap will allow to generate a a basic version without any extra properties, and then add them on the call with " JToken.FromObject(value, serializer); ".
/// </summary>
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
_dormant = true;
JToken t = JToken.FromObject(value, serializer);
if (t.Type == JTokenType.Object && value is IContent)
{
JObject o = (JObject)t;
o.AddFirst(new JProperty(TypePropertyName, value.GetType().Name));
o.WriteTo(writer);
}
else
{
t.WriteTo(writer);
}
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
public override bool CanRead => false;
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
if (_dormant)
{
_dormant = false;
return false;
}
return true;
}
}
I have created a test console application that has a simple class named Other. As an exercise, I want to set the OtherString property to null when it is serialized. I know how I could do this with a custom ContractResolver. I need to be able to do this with a custom Converter too.
The first converter I wrote was simple and the way I thought it should be. However, it would throw a "Self referencing loop detected with type 'JsonContractandConvert.Models.Other'. Path ''." exception. After doing some reading, I made some changes and now I have a working converter. These changes are a lot more verbose, but work.
My question is why are these changes required and is there a better way to do this with a Converter?
Other Class:
[JsonConverter(typeof(OtherConverter))]
public class Other
{
public int Id { get; set; }
public string OtherString { get; set; }
public int OtherInt { get; set; }
public string OtherName
{
get
{
return "Other Name = " + this.OtherString;
}
}
}
First Attempt: (This one throws an exception)
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (!this.CanConvert(value.GetType())) return;
var entity = value as Other;
if (entity == null) return;
entity.OtherString = null;
serializer.Serialize(writer, entity);
}
Second Attempt: (This works as expected)
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (!this.CanConvert(value.GetType())) return;
var entity = value as Other;
if (entity == null) return;
entity.OtherString = null;
writer.WriteStartObject();
var props = entity.GetType().GetProperties();
foreach (var propertyInfo in props)
{
var ignorAttribute =
propertyInfo.CustomAttributes.FirstOrDefault(i => i.AttributeType == typeof(JsonIgnoreAttribute));
if (ignorAttribute != null) continue;
var tempVal = propertyInfo.GetValue(entity);
if (tempVal == null) continue;
writer.WritePropertyName(propertyInfo.Name);
serializer.Serialize(writer, tempVal);
}
}
writer.WriteEndObject();
}
Edit:
Here's the code from the console app that I'm using to test.
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
var otherObj = new Other { Id = 123, OtherInt = 456, OtherString = "This is the other string"};
var json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(otherObj, Formatting.Indented);
Console.WriteLine(json);
}
}
Answering my own questions... (I think I've finally got my head around Json Converters)
To answer my basic question as to why one way works and the other doesn't. I think the answer is just that the way that doesn't work is just wrong. From what I can tell, you need to use the writer object. If you don't it won't work. (There may be scenarios where this is not the case, but I never found one.)
If you merely want to remove a property from the Json, use [JsonIgnore]. (Simple right?)
If you want to change the value some how, you'll need to use a Converter. By using a Converter, you're taking responsibility for serializing what ever object the Converter handles. So if the object is a simple type like a String, or an Int it's really easy. If it's something more complex like an array or complex object, then it takes a little more planning.
Here's an example of a simple String Converter:
Class to serialize:
public class Account
{
public int Id { get; set; }
public string AccountName { get; set; }
[JsonIgnore]
public virtual Account DefaultAssignTo { get; set; }
public int? DefaultAssignToId { get; set; }
[JsonIgnore]
public virtual ICollection<Role> Roles { get; set; }
[JsonIgnore]
public virtual Other Other { get; set; }
public int? OtherId { get; set; }
[JsonConverter(typeof(StringConverter))]
public string OtherName
{
get
{
return "Name = " + this.AccountName;
}
}
}
Converter:
public class StringConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(string).IsAssignableFrom(objectType);
}
public override bool CanRead
{
get { return false; }
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (!this.CanConvert(value.GetType())) return;
writer.WriteValue("blah blah blah");
}
}
Run: (As you can see I'm using Entity Framework for my data)
using (var db = new Context())
{
var json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(db.Accounts.FirstOrDefault(), Formatting.Indented,
new JsonSerializerSettings { NullValueHandling = NullValueHandling.Ignore });
Console.WriteLine(json);
}
Returns:
{
"Id": 43,
"AccountName": "John",
"DefaultAssignToId": 43,
"OtherId": 19,
"OtherName": "blah blah blah"
}
One of the things that messed me up for a bit was when to use writer.WriteStartObject(). Basically if you are Converting a complex object, you need to use it. If you do, then you need to create all of the property names and values. In the OP you can see an example of how I did this. The biggest down side is any Json attributes that properties are decorated with don't automatically happen. So if you can, decorate the class and let the serializer deal with it. Here's an interesting problem you can run into if you use it wrong.
In the String converter replace:
writer.WriteValue("blah blah blah");
with:
writer.WriteStartObject();
writer.WritePropertyName("BlahProp");
serializer.Serialize(writer, "blah blah blah");
writer.WriteEndObject();
run it again and here's the output: (Notice how OtherName is an object now instead of a string)
{
"Id": 43,
"AccountName": "John",
"DefaultAssignToId": 43,
"OtherId": 19,
"OtherName": {
"BlahProp": "blah blah blah"
}
}
The Roles collection also needed a Converter. Two things to note are first, you don't need to specify the property name and second, any Json attributes that the Role class is decorated with will work as expected.
using BaseCollection = System.Collections.Generic.ICollection<JsonContractandConvert.Models.Role>;
public class RemoveAccountsFromRolesConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(BaseCollection).IsAssignableFrom(objectType);
}
public override bool CanRead
{
get { return false; }
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (!this.CanConvert(value.GetType())) return;
var entities = value as BaseCollection;
if (entities == null) return;
writer.WriteStartArray();
foreach (var entity in entities)
{
entity.Accounts = null;
serializer.Serialize(writer, entity);
}
writer.WriteEndArray();
}
}
Lastly, here's a couple of converters I created for my real project:
This one converts an object to a shallow copy. This is useful if you have a collection where what that collection contains could cause a self referencing loop.
public class ShallowCopyCollectionConverter<TCollectionType, TCopyType> : JsonConverter
where TCollectionType : IEnumerable<TbdEntity>
where TCopyType : TbdEntity, new()
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(TCollectionType).IsAssignableFrom(objectType);
}
public override bool CanRead
{
get { return false; }
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (this.CanConvert(value.GetType()) == false) return;
var entities = (TCollectionType)value;
writer.WriteStartArray();
foreach (var entity in entities)
{
serializer.Serialize(writer, entity.ShallowCopy<TCopyType>()); //ShallowCopy<> is a method in the base class that all of my classes extend.
}
writer.WriteEndArray();
}
}
This one will convert an abstract using the concrete type:
public class DataSnapInConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return typeof(DataSnapIn) == (objectType);
}
public override bool CanWrite
{
get { return false; }
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
if (this.CanConvert(objectType) == false) return null;
var jo = JObject.Load(reader);
var typeName = jo["snapInType"] ?? jo["SnapInType"]; //the abstract classes have this property to identify what concrete class they are.
var typeNameString = typeName.ToString();
var deserializeType = Type.GetType(typeNameString);
if(deserializeType == null)
throw new Exception("SnapInType is null or does not reference a valid class.");
var result = Activator.CreateInstance(deserializeType);
serializer.Populate(jo.CreateReader(), result);
return result;
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
}
I have a class, FooCollection let's say, which implements IEnumerable<Foo>, and also provides an indexer by which one can look up a Foo by its name. Functionally it's read-only as a dictionary. But it's not really a dictionary because users do not get to decide on the keys.
Anyway, I want JSON.NET to serialize this object as a JSON dictionary, instead of as an array, which it's doing now. Sticking JsonDictionaryAttribute on it doesn't work: then it does nothing.
Clues?
You're probably going to need to create a custom JsonConverter for your FooCollection class in order to serialize it the way you want. Since you haven't posted any code at all, I'll just make something up for sake of example. Let's say your Foo and FooCollection classes look like this:
class Foo
{
public int Id { get; set; }
public string Name { get; set; }
}
class FooCollection : IEnumerable<Foo>
{
private List<Foo> list = new List<Foo>();
public void Add(Foo foo)
{
list.Add(foo);
}
public Foo this[string name]
{
get { return list.Find(f => f.Name == name); }
}
public IEnumerator<Foo> GetEnumerator()
{
return list.GetEnumerator();
}
IEnumerator IEnumerable.GetEnumerator()
{
return ((IEnumerable)list).GetEnumerator();
}
}
The following converter would serialize the FooCollection as if it were a dictionary. I'm assuming that you would want the converter to use the value of the Name property as the key for each Foo for purposes of serialization (to match the indexer on the collection), so that is how I implemented it. You can change it to something else by modifying the GetFooKey() method.
class FooCollectionConverter : JsonConverter
{
public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
{
return (objectType == typeof(FooCollection));
}
public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
writer.WriteStartObject();
foreach (Foo foo in (FooCollection)value)
{
writer.WritePropertyName(GetFooKey(foo));
serializer.Serialize(writer, foo);
}
writer.WriteEndObject();
}
// Given a Foo, return its unique key to be used during serialization
private string GetFooKey(Foo foo)
{
return foo.Name;
}
public override bool CanRead
{
get { return false; }
}
public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
{
throw new NotImplementedException();
}
}
Here is an example program that demonstrates how to use the converter.
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
FooCollection coll = new FooCollection();
coll.Add(new Foo { Id = 1, Name = "Moe" });
coll.Add(new Foo { Id = 2, Name = "Larry" });
coll.Add(new Foo { Id = 3, Name = "Curly" });
JsonSerializerSettings settings = new JsonSerializerSettings();
settings.Converters.Add(new FooCollectionConverter());
settings.Formatting = Newtonsoft.Json.Formatting.Indented;
string json = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(coll, settings);
Console.WriteLine(json);
}
}
And here is the output of the above program:
{
"Moe": {
"Id": 1,
"Name": "Moe"
},
"Larry": {
"Id": 2,
"Name": "Larry"
},
"Curly": {
"Id": 3,
"Name": "Curly"
}
}
Fiddle: https://dotnetfiddle.net/wI2iQG