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Create XML in .NET Core API and Send to Stored Procedure Using Dapper

Creating and sending XML data to a stored procedure in a .NET Core Web API can be a powerful way to handle complex data structures and maintain compatibility with systems that require XML. This article will guide you through the process of generating XML, creating a Web API, and using Dapper to send the XML to a stored procedure.

Prerequisites

  • .NET Core SDK installed.
  • Basic understanding of .NET Core and Web API.
  • Familiarity with Dapper for data access.
  • SQL Server or any other relational database that supports XML.

Step 1. Setup your .NET Core Web API project

Create a new .NET Core Web API project

Open a terminal or command prompt and run.

dotnet new webapi -n XmlApiDemo
cd XmlApiDemo

Install Dapper

Add Dapper to your project using NuGet.

dotnet add package Dapper

Step 2. Create the XML Data

Define your data model

Create a model class to represent the data you want to convert to XML.

public class Person
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Name { get; set; }
    public int Age { get; set; }
}

Generate XML from the data model

Create a helper method to generate XML.

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.IO;
using System.Text;
using System.Xml.Serialization;
public static class XmlHelper
{
    public static string SerializeToXml<T>(T obj)
    {
        var xmlSerializer = new XmlSerializer(typeof(T));
        using (var stringWriter = new StringWriter())
        {
            xmlSerializer.Serialize(stringWriter, obj);
            return stringWriter.ToString();
        }
    }
}

Step 3. Create the Web API Endpoint

Define the API Controller

Create a new API controller to handle the HTTP request.

using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Data.SqlClient;
using Dapper;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
[Route("api/[controller]")]
[ApiController]
public class XmlController : ControllerBase
{
    private readonly string _connectionString = "YourConnectionStringHere";
    [HttpPost]
    public async Task<IActionResult> Post([FromBody] List<Person> people)
    {
        var xml = XmlHelper.SerializeToXml(people);
        using (var connection = new SqlConnection(_connectionString))
        {
            var parameters = new DynamicParameters();
            parameters.Add("@XmlData", xml);
            await connection.ExecuteAsync("YourStoredProcedureName", parameters, commandType: System.Data.CommandType.StoredProcedure);
        }
        return Ok();
    }
}

Configure the Connection String

Update your appsettings.json to include the connection string to your database.

{
  "ConnectionStrings": {
    "DefaultConnection": "YourConnectionStringHere"
  },
  "Logging": {
    "LogLevel": {
      "Default": "Information",
      "Microsoft.AspNetCore": "Warning"
    }
  },
  "AllowedHosts": "*"
}

Read the Connection String

Modify the Startup. cs or Program.cs file to read the connection string.

public class Startup
{
    public Startup(IConfiguration configuration)
    {
        Configuration = configuration;
    }
    public IConfiguration Configuration { get; }
    public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
    {
        services.AddControllers();
        services.AddSingleton(Configuration);
    }
    public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IWebHostEnvironment env)
    {
        if (env.IsDevelopment())
        {
            app.UseDeveloperExceptionPage();
        }
        app.UseHttpsRedirection();
        app.UseRouting();
        app.UseAuthorization();
        app.UseEndpoints(endpoints =>
        {
            endpoints.MapControllers();
        });
    }
}

Step 4. Create the Stored Procedure

Create a stored procedure in your database to accept the XML data.

CREATE PROCEDURE YourStoredProcedureName
    @XmlData XML
AS
BEGIN
    -- Example: Insert data from XML into a table
    INSERT INTO People (Id, Name, Age)
    SELECT 
        Person.value('(Id)[1]', 'INT') AS Id,
        Person.value('(Name)[1]', 'NVARCHAR(50)') AS Name,
        Person.value('(Age)[1]', 'INT') AS Age
    FROM 
        @XmlData.nodes('/ArrayOfPerson/Person') AS XmlTable(Person);
END

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can successfully create XML data in a .NET Core Web API and send it to a stored procedure using Dapper. This approach allows you to handle complex data structures efficiently and maintain compatibility with systems that require XML. The combination of .NET Core, Dapper, and SQL Server provides a powerful and flexible way to handle data operations in your applications.


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