VB.Net - Convert obj into data or xml

You could do XML serialization. I discussed this topic in two articles I wrote (bad jokes thrown in at no extra charge). Take a look at the following:

https://www.experts-exchange.com/Programming/Languages/.NET/A_3024-Introduction-to-XML-Serialization-in-NET.html

https://www.experts-exchange.com/Programming/Languages/.NET/A_3041-Writing-a-Class-Struct-to-be-XML-Serialized-and-Creating-a-Class-from-a-Schema.html

Hi, many thanks for the reply.  Great article and looked exactly what I needed but when I changed the example from data to my object - obj ......

Dim filename As String = "test.dat"
Dim serializer As New XmlSerializer(GetType(String))
        Using writer As New XmlTextWriter(filename, Encoding.UTF8)
            Try
                serializer.Serialize(writer, obj)
                Console.WriteLine("Serialization successful! Wrote test.dat!")
            Catch ex As Exception
                Console.WriteLine(ex.ToString)
            End Try
        End Using

I got this error

System.InvalidOperationException: There was an error generating the XML document. ---> System.InvalidCastException: Unable to cast object of type 'WindowsApplication1.Service1.MessageHeaderType' to type 'System.String'.

If it makes a difference, I forgot to mention that this is a soap server?

Any idea what I'm doing wrong?  Thanks again

SO impressive - many thanks, worked perfectly!  Just as a point, I must now read the xml data into a connection string.  Is there maybe a way of pulling the data directly in to variables instead of having to now get them from the newly created xml file?

Is there maybe a way of pulling the data directly in to variables instead of having to now get them from the newly created xml file?

I don't understand the question. If they do not come from the file, where will they be coming from?

Directly from the object itself without creating the xml file first?
So instead of converting the object into an xml file and then getting the values from the xml file, just getting the values directly from the object.   So really trying to cut out one of the steps?    Is that feasible?

If you already have the data in an instance of a class or structure, then just access any of the instance's public methods or properties. There is no need to convert to XML to extract the data.

Sorry to be stupid, but that's what I was asking.   If I have the data in an object, how do I access it.   The file received was originally sent as an xml file containing the data and received as an object.    I really only need the data from the object but don't know how to access it.  Nothing in my searches seems to address accessing the individual data in the object.   Many thanks for replying

Is it possible to post code related to how you "received [it] as an object?"

Hi - This is the code.  Many thanks for coming back

Dim wGLN As New wService1.GetMessage With {.Number = "2456276", .MsgType = wService1.MessageType.Download, .acceptAll = wService1.yesNo.Y}

From your example it produces this xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<MessageType creationDate="2013-09-04T17:46:36.816" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <user xmlns="https://www.xxxxx..com/download">fred</user>
      <Number xmlns="https://www.xxxxx..com/dloads">2456276</Number>
      <to xmlns="https://www.xxxxx.com/dloads">
      <IDNumber>57644350</IDNumber>
      </to>
</MessageType>

Hmmm...  Does the GetMessage class actually go and retrieve the data? Do you have to call any method on that class to initiate the download?

Hi, yes.  This is the function

Dim inValue As wService1.GetMessage = New wService1.GetMessage()
inValue.Security = Security
inValue.GetMessage = GetMessage
Dim retVal As wService1.GetMessage = CType(Me,wService1.IPullService).GetMessage(inValue)
Return retVal.GetMessage

I've been slammed at work the past few days. I'll pick this up later this afternoon.

Thank you Kaufmed

OK, so in that last example you have two objects that have some data:  You have the parameter going to the service, and you have the return from the service. This is inValue and retVal, respectively. Each of those are instances of classes that should have some properties available to you. I assume you are interested in the return from the service, so inspect the properties of retVal to see if they are the ones you are after.

.NET will take care of transforming your parameter into the XML that will go out on the wire; likewise, it will take care of converting the XML coming in on the wire for the response into the object that you have for the return value.