Reading Text file into Collection in C#

Here is one example. Once this logic completed, you would access each "Script" by doing something like:

    data["v2_10_0"]["v2_10_0_1"][0]
    data["v2_10_0"]["v2_10_0_1"][1]
    data["v2_10_0"]["v2_10_0_1"][2]

etc.

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Collections.Specialized;
using System.IO;
using System.Linq;

namespace ConsoleApplication16
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>> data = new Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>>();

            using (StreamReader reader = new StreamReader("test.txt"))
            {
                bool foundOuterBegin = false, foundInnerBegin = false;
                string currentOuter = string.Empty, currentInner = string.Empty;

                while (!reader.EndOfStream)
                {
                    string line = reader.ReadLine().Trim();
                    string value;

                    if (line.IndexOf('=') >= 0)
                    {
                        value = line.Substring(line.IndexOf('=') + 1).Trim(new char[] { '"', ' ' });
                    }
                    else
                    {
                        value = line;
                    }

                    if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("begin"))
                    {
                        if (foundOuterBegin)
                        {
                            foundInnerBegin = true;
                            currentInner = value;

                            data[currentOuter].Add(currentInner, new StringCollection());
                        }
                        else
                        {
                            foundOuterBegin = true;
                            currentOuter = value;

                            if (!data.Keys.Contains(currentOuter))
                            {
                                data.Add(currentOuter, new Dictionary<string, StringCollection>());
                            }
                        }
                    }
                    else if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("end"))
                    {
                        if (foundInnerBegin)
                        {
                            foundInnerBegin = false;
                        }
                        else if (foundOuterBegin)
                        {
                            foundOuterBegin = false;
                        }
                    }
                    else if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("script"))
                    {
                        if (foundOuterBegin && foundInnerBegin)
                        {
                            data[currentOuter][currentInner].Add(value);
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

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Hi Genius,
                  Code is excellent it works great. However how do i write this back to text file. Issue is how to identify which is root begin folder and which one has scripts.

Appreciate your help

Here is a completed project and the resulting output when using your original sample data:


Resulting Data
=========================================================
Begin Folder = "v2_10_0"
      Begin Folder = "v2_10_0_1"
            Script = "alter_udt.sql"
            Script = "dbo.p_test_1.StoredProcedure.sql"
            Script = "dbo.p_test_2 _detail.StoredProcedure.sql"
            Script = "dbo.uf_Split_Data_Into_Table.UserDefinedFunction.sql"
            Script = "update_data_on_udt_columns.sql"
      End
      Begin Folder = "v2_10_0_4"
            Script = "alter_udt.sql"
            Script = "dbo.p_test_4.StoredProcedure.sql"
            Script = "dbo.p_test_4 _detail.StoredProcedure.sql"
            Script = "dbo.uf_Split_Data_Into_Table.UserDefinedFunction.sql"
            Script = "update_data_on_udt_columns.sql"
      End
      Begin Folder = "v2_10_0_5"
            Script = "update_system_info.sql"
      End
      Begin Folder = "v2_10_0_6"
            Script = "dbo.dbo.p_test_6 _detail.StoredProcedure.sql"
            Script = "update_system_info.sql"
      End
      Begin Folder = "v2_10_0_8"
            Script = "TESTING 4"
            Script = "TESTING 5"
      End
End
Begin Folder = "v3_10_0"
      Begin Folder = "v3_10_0_1"
            Script = "TESTING 1"
            Script = "TESTING 2"
      End
End

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Collections.Specialized;
using System.IO;
using System.Linq;

namespace ConsoleApplication16
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>> data = ReadFromFile("test.txt");

            data["v2_10_0"].Add("v2_10_0_8", new StringCollection());
            data["v2_10_0"]["v2_10_0_8"].Add("TESTING 4");
            data["v2_10_0"]["v2_10_0_8"].Add("TESTING 5");


            data.Add("v3_10_0", new Dictionary<string, StringCollection>());
            data["v3_10_0"].Add("v3_10_0_1", new StringCollection());
            data["v3_10_0"]["v3_10_0_1"].Add("TESTING 1");
            data["v3_10_0"]["v3_10_0_1"].Add("TESTING 2");

            WriteToFile("test.txt", data);
        }

        static void WriteToFile(string filePath, Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>> data)
        {
            using (StreamWriter writer = new StreamWriter(filePath))
            {
                foreach (var outerKey in data.Keys)
                {
                    writer.WriteLine(string.Format("Begin Folder = \"{0}\"", outerKey));

                    foreach (var innerKey in data[outerKey].Keys)
                    {
                        writer.WriteLine(string.Format("\tBegin Folder = \"{0}\"", innerKey));

                        foreach (var item in data[outerKey][innerKey])
                        {
                            writer.WriteLine(string.Format("\t\tScript = \"{0}\"", item));
                        }

                        writer.WriteLine("\tEnd");
                    }

                    writer.WriteLine("End");
                }
            }
        }

        static Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>> ReadFromFile(string filePath)
        {
            Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>> result = new Dictionary<string, Dictionary<string, StringCollection>>();

            using (StreamReader reader = new StreamReader(filePath))
            {
                bool foundOuterBegin = false, foundInnerBegin = false;
                string currentOuter = string.Empty, currentInner = string.Empty;

                while (!reader.EndOfStream)
                {
                    string line = reader.ReadLine().Trim();
                    string value;

                    if (line.IndexOf('=') >= 0)
                    {
                        value = line.Substring(line.IndexOf('=') + 1).Trim(new char[] { '"', ' ' });
                    }
                    else
                    {
                        value = line;
                    }

                    if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("begin"))
                    {
                        if (foundOuterBegin)
                        {
                            foundInnerBegin = true;
                            currentInner = value;

                            result[currentOuter].Add(currentInner, new StringCollection());
                        }
                        else
                        {
                            foundOuterBegin = true;
                            currentOuter = value;

                            if (!result.Keys.Contains(currentOuter))
                            {
                                result.Add(currentOuter, new Dictionary<string, StringCollection>());
                            }
                        }
                    }
                    else if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("end"))
                    {
                        if (foundInnerBegin)
                        {
                            foundInnerBegin = false;
                        }
                        else if (foundOuterBegin)
                        {
                            foundOuterBegin = false;
                        }
                    }
                    else if (line.ToLower().StartsWith("script"))
                    {
                        if (foundOuterBegin && foundInnerBegin)
                        {
                            result[currentOuter][currentInner].Add(value);
                        }
                    }
                }
            }

            return result;
        }
    }
}

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I am still using .NET 2.0, Linq does not work for me. Can you please change the var in write file method to equivalent 2.0

Wow this really works like a champ. How can i compare two text files created like this. Please let me know

Compare the files themselves or the collections?

I have to compare the files and merge them

So my question to you is are you comparing the collections, once the files have been loaded, and then writing out a unique list of Folders and Scripts?

Good morning kaufmed!

Read his other open PAQ here:
https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/26463557/Merge-text-files-not-join.html

There are lots of details in there...towards the bottom.  I've just been super busy lately and haven't gotten back to the question.

I'm sure you can whip something up and then get points for both questions!

~IM

Very gracious Idle. Thx  :)

On Idle Mind's cue, I'm going to suggest that this question ("Reading Text file into Collection in C#") has been answered and I will prose an answer to your most recent question in this thread on the thread brought to my attention by Idle Mind, which is of the same subject.

Problem solved