What is XML Serialization?

Serialization is the process of converting an object into a form that can be readily transported. For example, you can serialize an object and transport it over the Internet using HTTP between a client and a server. On the other end, deserialization reconstructs the object from the stream.

And also serialization of XML to common language runtime objects enables one to convert XML documents into a form where they are easier to process using conventional programming languages.

Sample with C# .Net

1. Create a console application

2. Add new XML schema to the project

3. Add new Complex type and an Element type to the schema.

4. Run following command in Visual Studio Command Prompt to convert created XML schema to the C# class.

>xsd.exe /c Person.xsd

This will create a C# file named “Person.cs” inside the solution folder. Add the created C# file into the solution.

5. xsd.exe is a utility to generate schema or class files from given source. It is included with the .NET Framework. There are three main uses for xsd.exe.

· xsd.exe <schema>.xsd which will create source code for the appropriate class to de-serialize your object.

· xsd.exe <assembly>.dll|.exe is used to read the code and generate a schema (.xsd) file for you.

· xsd.exe <instance>.xml|.xdr which will try to infer an .xsd file which you can then use to create an appropriate class

6. Code sample to do a serialization

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Text;

using System.Xml.Serialization;
using System.IO;

namespace SerializationSample
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            //Serializing..
            Person person = new Person();
            person.id = 100;
            person.name = "Diluksha Geeganage";
            person.address = "Sri Lanka";
            person.age = 27;

            XmlSerializer xmlS = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Person));
            FileStream file = new FileStream(@"Persons.xml", FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write);
            xmlS.Serialize(file, person);

            Console.WriteLine("Serializing Completed");
            Console.Read();

            file.Close();
        }
    }
}

7. Code sample to do a deserialization

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Text;

using System.Xml.Serialization;
using System.IO;

namespace SerializationSample
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            //Deserializing..
            Person objPerson;

            XmlSerializer xmlD = new XmlSerializer(typeof(Person));
            FileStream fileD = new FileStream(@"Persons.xml", FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read);

            objPerson = (Person)xmlD.Deserialize(fileD);
            Console.WriteLine("ID {0} Name {1} Address {2} Age {3}", objPerson.id, objPerson.name, objPerson.address, objPerson.age);
            Console.Read();

            fileD.Close();
        }
    }
}