Perl, replace multiple matches in string

Question

So, i'm parsing an XML, and got a problem. XML has objects containing script, which looks about that:

return [
['measurement' : org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils.readFileToByteArray(new File('tab_2_1.png')),
'kpi' : org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils.readFileToByteArray(new File('tab_2_2.png'))]]

I need to replace all filenames, saving file format, every entry of regexp template, because string can look like that:

['measurement' : org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils.readFileToByteArray(new File('tab_2_1.png'))('tab_2_1.png'))('tab_2_1.png')),

and i still need to replace all image_name before .png

I used this regexp : .*\(\'(.*)\.png\'\), but it catches only last match in line before \n, not in whole string.

Can you help me with correcting this regexp?

What do you need to replace the name with? I assume it is something derived dynamically from the existing name, rather than a fixed string for all of them? — zdim
– zdim, Commented Aug 2, 2017 at 8:08

zdim · Accepted Answer · 2019-02-18 21:57:45Z

2

The problem is that .* is greedy: it matches everything it can. So .*x matches all up to the very last x in the string, even if all that contains xs. You need the non-greedy

s/\('(.*?)\.png/('$replacement.png/g;

where the ? makes .* match up to the first .png. The \(' are needed to suitably delimit the pattern to the filename. This correctly replaces the filenames in the shown examples.

Another way to do this is \('([^.]*)\.png, where [^.] is the negated character class, matching anything that is not a .. With the * quantifier it again matches all up to the first .png

The question doesn't say how exactly you are "parsing an XML" but I dearly hope that it is with libraries like XML::LibXML of XML::Twig. Please do not attempt that with regex. The tool is just not fully adequate for the job, and you'll get to know about it. A lot has been written over years about this, search SO.

edited Feb 18, 2019 at 21:57

answered Aug 1, 2017 at 1:57

zdim

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