How Can I Serialize a String as CDATA Using .NET's XmlSerializer?

A clever solution to the lack of CDATA attributes in .NET XmlSerializer

The XmlSerializer in the .NET framework provides a powerful function for serializing objects into XML documents. However, it lacks a direct attribute to specify serialization of the string to CDATA.

A creative solution

To work around this limitation, we can use a clever workaround. By implementing a custom property that encapsulates the desired CDATA behavior, we can achieve the desired effect.

[Serializable]
public class MyClass
{
    public MyClass() { }

    [XmlIgnore]
    public string MyString { get; set; }
    [XmlElement("MyString")]
    public System.Xml.XmlCDataSection MyStringCDATA
    {
        get
        {
            return new System.Xml.XmlDocument().CreateCDataSection(MyString);
        }
        set
        {
            MyString = value.Value;
        }
    }
}

In this custom attribute:

• MyString: Represents the actual string to be serialized.
• MyStringCDATA: Implements getter and setter methods for converting string to CDATA and vice versa.

Usage:

To use this solution just:

MyClass mc = new MyClass();
mc.MyString = "<test>Hello World</test>";
XmlSerializer serializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(MyClass));
StringWriter writer = new StringWriter();
serializer.Serialize(writer, mc);
Console.WriteLine(writer.ToString());

This code will generate the expected XML output, where the string is contained in CDATA:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><myclass xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"><mystring><![CDATA[<test>Hello World</test>]]></mystring></myclass>

(Note: The output XML example may differ slightly from the original, depending on the .NET version and serialization settings. The key is that the MyStringCDATA attribute successfully encapsulates the string in a CDATA section.)

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