Need help to XMLSerialize Object Content

Question

I am using XMLSerialization to pass data from a client based Win7 application to our server (Server 2008 R2) via a Pipe communication process. I have been brought into this project to finish the previous developer's efforts who abandoned it ... therefore I am presently trying to fix the C# code in VS2010 that doesn't work.

The problem is that I cannot obtain full serialization of the resulting output from the following method which is in "public partial class Test". We have a table defined in the MS Compact Server database (named "Test") which matches each item below and has a FK to the "Channel" table, based on matching TestID's in both tables. EntityCollection is based on its relationship to the "Channel" table:

public Test(Guid TestID, String TestName, String TestRemarks, String ScriptPath,
            EntityCollection<Channel> TChannels)
{
    ID = TestID;
    Name = TestName;
    Remarks = TestRemarks;
    Path = ScriptPath;
    Channels = TChannels;
}

Here is a sample of how it is used in the execution of the method:

Test T = new Test(NewID, "Test1", "Test_120912-1729",
            "C:\\Temp\\TestScript_16.txt", TChannels);

Here is the result of the serialization process:

<DataCore xsi:type="Test">
  <ID>bc6a8ef7-c31f-404d-8108-86219d45be63</ID>
  <Name>Test1</Name>
  <Remarks>Test_120912-1729</Remarks>
  <Path>C:\Temp\TestScript_16.txt</Path>
</DataCore>

The first four parameters serialize fine, but the last one (the EntityCollection) is failing to do so. However, if I try to serialize "TChannels" by itself (outside the "Test" function) the serialization of each Test Channel works perfectly. I don't fully understand the limitations/requirements for utilizing XMLserialization to solve this problem. Why am I unable to serialize the EntityCollection< > from within the function?

Thanks for your assistance!

This may be related to XmlSerializer not loading the child entities - they are lazy-loaded by default. What is the status of Channels.IsLoaded? Have you tried Channels.Load() before attempting your serialization? — Dave R.
– Dave R., Commented Sep 13, 2012 at 21:20
Channels.IsLoaded is "false". Based on your suggestion,w When I try to insert a line prior to Serialization, "Channels.Load();" , the VS compiler states "'Channels' does not contain a definition for 'Load'". This should be a clue to me, however, I don't know what I should do to handle the 'Load()' definition. Thanks for your help to this point! — David
– David, Commented Sep 13, 2012 at 22:13
You may have to use LoadProperty instead if your classes aren't EF: msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd395523 and msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb896272%28v=vs.100%29. Sorry about not spotting that last time. Another possibility is to replace the plain XmlSerializer with a DataContractSerializer, although I don't think that removes the need to load child relations: stackoverflow.com/questions/6234290/…. Sorry I can't be more specific. — Dave R.
– Dave R., Commented Sep 13, 2012 at 23:02
Thanks, Dave. I will look into your references and explore my options. Should I change "LazyLoadingEnabled" to "false" in the Model.edmx ( ' <EntityContainer Name="IP_DBEntities" annotation:LazyLoadingEnabled="true"> ' )?? — David
– David, Commented Sep 13, 2012 at 23:16

David · Accepted Answer · 2012-09-17 23:16:15Z

0

I finally found a solution to the above problem. While the many suggestions were appreciated, none of them provided a solution to my inability to XmlSerialize a child EntityCollection. I dug deeper and looked into the ADO.NET Framework and found within the auto generated code in my database Model.Designer.cs file, an [XmlIgnoreAttribute()] near the beginning of Navigation Properties in my Test (EdmEntityTypeAttribute).

I simply removed the [XmlIgnoreAttribute()] line completely and now all the child objects of "Channels" from the EntityCollection<> are Serialized properly. I hope this can help others who are also unable to Serialize child objects.

Thanks @Dave R.

answered Sep 17, 2012 at 23:16

David

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