c# Deserialize XML nested collections

Question

Hi I have some XML I wish to deserialise to .NET POCOs using the XMLSerializer

the xml looks like this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  <message uuid="{2f1e274c-6a53-afea-3047-6dc739539656}">
    <envelope received="a_date" subject="a_name">
      <from>
        <monitor name="Local Folder" user_description="" uuid="{668DC658-97D7-42c8-AE72-ED289DD02355}"/>
      </from>
      <to>
        <account>
          <factory name="a_name"/>
        </account>
      </to>
    </envelope>
    <status>
      <action name="Folder" occured="a_date" type="monitor">
        <session completed="a_date" name="a_name" started="a_date"/>
      </action>
      <action occured="a_date" type="monitor"/>
      <action occured="a_date" type="translate">
        <session completed="a_date" current="a_number" name="a_name" started="a_date" total="a_number" unit="time"/>
        <session completed="a_date" current="a_number" name="a_name" started="a_date" total="a_number" unit="time"/>
      </action>
      <action occured="a_date" type="deliver">
        <session completed="a_date" current="a_number" name="a_name" started="a_date" total="a_number" unit="byte"/>
        <session completed="a_date" name="a_name" started="a_date" unit="byte"/>
        <session completed="a_date" current="a_number" name="a_name" started="a_date" total="a_number" unit="byte"/>
      </action>
      <action occured="a_date" type="complete"/>
    </status>
    <host name="a_name"/>
</message>

Within the xml, I have a status section which contains a collection of actions, each action may contain a collection of sessions.

I have created classes for the XMLSerialiser to deserialize the xml:

namespace myNameSpace
{
    [XmlRoot("message")]
    public class message
    {
        [XmlAttribute("uuid")] 
        public string uuid { get; set; }
        [XmlElement("envelope")]
        public envelope envelope { get; set; }
        [XmlArray("status")]
        [XmlArrayItem(typeof(action))]
        public ObservableCollection<action> status { get; set; }
        [XmlElement("host")]
        public host host { get; set; }
    }

    public class envelope
    {
        [XmlAttribute("received")] 
        public string received { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("subject")]
        public string subject { get; set; }
        [XmlElement("from")]
        public from from { get; set; }
        [XmlElement("to")]
        public to to { get; set; }
    }

    #region envelope element definitions

    public class from
    {
        [XmlElement("monitor")]
        public monitor monitor { get; set; }

    }

    public class monitor
    {
        [XmlAttribute("name")]
        public string name { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("user_description")]
        public string user_description { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("uuid")]
        public string uuid { get; set; }

    }

    public class to
    {
        [XmlElementAttribute("account")]
        public account account { get; set; }
    }

    public class account
    {
        [XmlElementAttribute("factory")]
        public factory factory { get; set; }
    }

    public class factory
    {
        [XmlAttribute("name")]
        public string name { get; set; }
    }

    #endregion

    public class action
    {
        [XmlAttribute("name")]
        public string name { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("occured")]
        public string occured { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("type")]
        public string type { get; set; }
        [XmlArray("action")]
        [XmlArrayItem(typeof(session))]
        public ObservableCollection<session> session { get; set; }
    }

    public class session
    {
        [XmlAttribute("completed")]
        public string completed { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("current")]
        public long current { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("name")]
        public string name { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("started")]
        public string started { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("total")]
        public long total { get; set; }
        [XmlAttribute("unit")]
        public string unit { get; set; }
    }

    public class host
    {
        [XmlAttribute("name")]
        public string name { get; set; }
    }
}

Mostly I get the object graph I desire with all the values correctly deserialzed, but I can not find a way to get the XMLSerialiser to deserialize the session collection within an action element - The are always empty.

Does anyone know how I might build my POCOs so that the XMLserialiser can create the session collections?

best regards

John.

typo? (or brand new data type): public from from { get; set; } - should that have been string? — Rob Levine
– Rob Levine, Commented Feb 14, 2012 at 16:54
no I have a class called 'from' : you can see it in the envelop element definitions region. — John
– John, Commented Feb 14, 2012 at 16:59
Wouldn't it be easier to generete the classes from the xml using xsd.exe? From command you can do: 1) xsd c:\test.xml (this generates test.xsd), 2) xsd test.xsd /classes (this generates the test.cs) — Alex Mendez
– Alex Mendez, Commented Feb 14, 2012 at 17:18

Alex Mendez · Accepted Answer · 2012-02-14 17:31:05Z

This was generated using xsd.exe. Hope this helps.

using System.Xml.Serialization;
using System.Xml.Schema;
using System;

[SerializableAttribute()]
[XmlRootAttribute(Namespace = "", IsNullable = false)]
public partial class message
{
    [XmlElementAttribute("envelope", Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    public messageEnvelope[] envelope { get; set; }

    [XmlArrayAttribute(Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    [XmlArrayItemAttribute("action", typeof(messageStatusAction), Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false)]
    public messageStatusAction[][] status { get; set; }

    [XmlElementAttribute("host", Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    public messageHost[] host { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string uuid { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageEnvelope
{
    [XmlArrayAttribute(Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    [XmlArrayItemAttribute("monitor", typeof(messageEnvelopeFromMonitor), Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false)]
    public messageEnvelopeFromMonitor[][] from { get; set; }

    [XmlArrayAttribute(Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    [XmlArrayItemAttribute("account", typeof(messageEnvelopeTOAccountFactory[]), Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false)]
    [XmlArrayItemAttribute("factory", typeof(messageEnvelopeTOAccountFactory), Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified, IsNullable = false, NestingLevel = 1)]
    public messageEnvelopeTOAccountFactory[][][] to { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string received { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string subject { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageEnvelopeFromMonitor
{
    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string name { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string user_description { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string uuid { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageEnvelopeTOAccountFactory
{
    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string name { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageStatusAction
{
    [XmlElementAttribute("session", Form = XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)]
    public messageStatusActionSession[] session { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string name { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string occured { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string type { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageStatusActionSession
{
    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string completed { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string name { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string started { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string current { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string total { get; set; }

    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string unit { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
public partial class messageHost
{
    [XmlAttributeAttribute()]
    public string name { get; set; }
}

[SerializableAttribute()]
[XmlRootAttribute(Namespace = "", IsNullable = false)]
public partial class NewDataSet
{
    [XmlElementAttribute("message")]
    public message[] Items { get; set; }
}

Thanks Alex: I have just done as you suggested, I looked at the code generated by the tool, in particular the attribute it placed on the Session Collection - [System.Xml.Serialization.XmlElementAttribute("session", Form=System.Xml.Schema.XmlSchemaForm.Unqualified)] I applied this attribute to my session collection in the action class, and now the xml is fully deserialized. Thank you very much. I never new about the xsd comman before much appreciated. John

Seb · Accepted Answer · 2012-02-14 17:02:11Z

0

First, session must inherit action.

Then you might need to replace public ObservableCollection<action> status { get; set; } by public List<action> status { get; set; } or public action[] status { get; set; } (I don't if ObservableCollection is considered XmlSerializable).

Finally, you may have to add the [XmlInclude(typeof(session))] on the action class declaration.

answered Feb 14, 2012 at 17:02

Seb

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2 Comments

John Over a year ago

ObservableCollection appears to work: as the status collection of the message is deserialized correctly.

John Over a year ago

Hi thanks for the quick response... ObservableCollection appears to work: as the status collection of the message is deserialized correctly. If I make session inherit action... when I run the app I get an InvalidOperationException And adding [XmlInclude(typeof(session))] does not improve the situation, I still get empty session collections

SwDevMan81 · Accepted Answer · 2012-02-14 17:11:58Z

0

I believe your problem is once you are at the action level, you cant specify it as the XmlArray Type. That would be the sessions. Give this a try and see if it works:

public class action
{
    [XmlAttribute("name")]
    public string name { get; set; }
    [XmlAttribute("occured")]
    public string occured { get; set; }
    [XmlAttribute("type")]
    public string type { get; set; }
    [XmlArray(typeof(session))]
    public ObservableCollection<session> session { get; set; }
}

edited Feb 14, 2012 at 17:11

answered Feb 14, 2012 at 16:55

SwDevMan81

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3 Comments

John Over a year ago

Sadly the vs compiler does not like [XmlArray(typof(session))] it insists that it must be a string and gives the following error: System.Xml.Serialization.XmlArrayAttribute.XmlArrayAttribute(string)' has some invalid arguments

John Over a year ago

I do agree that the issue is that I can not define the 'action' array within the action class. If I had control of the xml i would nest the sessions within a session_collection element. Unfortunately I have to take the xml as is.

SwDevMan81 Over a year ago

@John - Ah ok, does using the string ("session") work instead of using typeof (guessing not)?

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