Converting XML to string using C#

Question

I have a function as below

public string GetXMLAsString(XmlDocument myxml)
    {
        XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
        doc.LoadXml(myxml);
       
        StringWriter sw = new StringWriter();
        XmlTextWriter tx = new XmlTextWriter(sw);
        doc.WriteTo(tx);

        string str = sw.ToString();// 
        return str;
    }

I'm passing an XML to this method from an another method. But in the doc.loadxml(), the system is expecting a string and since I'm passing an XML, it throws error.

How to solve this issue?

Voting to close this, as it should have been in the first place, OP had simply confused how to use the typed parameter that was already passed in. — Chris Schaller
– Chris Schaller, Commented Feb 8, 2022 at 7:48

Community · Accepted Answer · 2017-05-23 11:54:50Z

62

As Chris suggests, you can do it like this:

public string GetXMLAsString(XmlDocument myxml)
{
    return myxml.OuterXml;
}

Or like this:

public string GetXMLAsString(XmlDocument myxml)
    {

        StringWriter sw = new StringWriter();
        XmlTextWriter tx = new XmlTextWriter(sw);
        myxml.WriteTo(tx);

        string str = sw.ToString();// 
        return str;
    }

and if you really want to create a new XmlDocument then do this

XmlDocument newxmlDoc= myxml

edited May 23, 2017 at 11:54

CommunityBot

11 silver badge

answered May 28, 2011 at 10:52

Kimtho6

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1 Comment

DeadlyDroid Over a year ago

1 st answer Works Perfectly

Chris Moutray · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-23 08:14:41Z

33

There's a much simpler way to convert your XmlDocument to a string; use the OuterXml property. The OuterXml property returns a string version of the xml.

public string GetXMLAsString(XmlDocument myxml)
{
    return myxml.OuterXml;
}

answered Oct 23, 2012 at 8:14

Chris Moutray

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4 Comments

Chris Schaller Over a year ago

For future readers, in this case there is no need to use a method to expose this functionality at all.

Chris Moutray Over a year ago

@ChrisSchaller I find this comment a little cryptic - what do you mean; has OuterXml been replaced with something else?

Chris Schaller Over a year ago

I mean what is the point of wrapping this call in the GetXMLAsString() method at all, just tell OP to use XmlDocument.OuterXml. I know this was answered a long time ago, I'm coming across noob developers referencing this answer as the reason they created a GetXMLAsString() method and I keep rejecting their commits ;)

Chris Moutray Over a year ago

@ChrisSchaller lol oh I see, yes the answer satisfied the original OP's method in the question - perhaps there was a interface or a need for abstraction for unit tests etc. Anyway I'm amazed this one, with the same answer had so many upvotes and still receives them stackoverflow.com/a/2407324/81053

Kimtho6 · Accepted Answer · 2011-05-28 14:00:50Z

4

   public string GetXMLAsString(XmlDocument myxml)
    {
        using (var stringWriter = new StringWriter())
        {
            using (var xmlTextWriter = XmlWriter.Create(stringWriter))
            {
               myxml.WriteTo(xmlTextWriter);
               return stringWriter.ToString();
            }

        }    
}

edited May 28, 2011 at 14:00

Kimtho6

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answered May 28, 2011 at 10:59

danyolgiax

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1 Comment

Andreas Over a year ago

+1 for using, the detour with GetStringBuilder() isn't necessary, stringWriter.ToString() will do it

Ivette · Accepted Answer · 2023-09-28 13:17:48Z

-1

String pathFile = "C:\File.XML"; String readConfiguration = File.ReadAllText(pathFile , Encoding.Unicode);

answered Sep 28, 2023 at 13:17

Ivette

1

1 Comment

Jeremy Caney Over a year ago

Thank you for contributing to the Stack Overflow community. This may be a correct answer, but it’d be really useful to provide additional explanation of your code so developers can understand your reasoning. This is especially useful for new developers who aren’t as familiar with the syntax or struggling to understand the concepts. Would you kindly edit your answer to include additional details for the benefit of the community?

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