Create a C# class from an XML file.

Problem

Is it possible to create a C# class from an XML file?

Asked by user496949

Solution #1

You can Special Paste your XML file as classes in VS 2012 (or newer) if you’re working on a.NET 4.5 project.

Answered by miszczu

Solution #2

Yes, xsd.exe can be used.

D:\temp>xsd test.xml
Microsoft (R) Xml Schemas/DataTypes support utility
[Microsoft (R) .NET Framework, Version 4.0.30319.1]
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Writing file 'D:\temp\test.xsd'.

D:\temp>xsd test.xsd /classes
Microsoft (R) Xml Schemas/DataTypes support utility
[Microsoft (R) .NET Framework, Version 4.0.30319.1]
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Writing file 'D:\temp\test.cs'.

Notes

It can be useful to know how to change directory in Developer Command Prompt to d:temp.

There is an issue in the XSD.exe generator when generating classes for multi-dimensional arrays, although there are workarounds.

Answered by Darin Dimitrov

Solution #3

I thought the Paste Special was the holy grail at first! However, when I tried it, my hair went white, much as in the Indiana Jones film.

But now that I’m using http://xmltocsharp.azurewebsites.net/, I’m as young as I’ve ever been.

Here’s a sample of the output:

namespace Xml2CSharp
{
    [XmlRoot(ElementName="entry")]
    public class Entry {
        [XmlElement(ElementName="hybrisEntryID")]
        public string HybrisEntryID { get; set; }
        [XmlElement(ElementName="mapicsLineSequenceNumber")]
        public string MapicsLineSequenceNumber { get; set; }

Answered by D. Kermott

Solution #4

I realize this is an old post, and you have most likely moved on.

But, because I was having the same issue as you, I decided to develop my own program.

For me, the “xml -> xsd -> classes” path resulted in a blob of code that was utterly unmaintainable, so I ditched it.

It’s not really elegant, but it got the job done for me.

It’s available here: If you like it, please give suggestions.

SimpleXmlToCode

Answered by Talon

Solution #5

svcutil is a good option (svcutil question)

The XML schema file is used by both xsd.exe and svcutil (.xsd). To be used by either of these tools, your XML must comply to a schema file.

It’s worth noting that there are a variety of third-party tools available for this.

Answered by ng5000

Post is based on https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4203540/generate-c-sharp-class-from-xml