Easy way to convert a Dictionary to xml and vice versa

Question

Wondering if there is a fast way, maybe with linq?, to convert a Dictionary into a XML document. And a way to convert the xml back to a di

Answer 1

You can use DataContractSerializer. Code below.

    public static string SerializeDict()
    {
        IDictionary dict = new Dictionary();
        dict["key"] = "value1";
        dict["key2"] = "value2";
        // serialize the dictionary
        DataContractSerializer serializer = new DataContractSerializer(dict.GetType());

        using (StringWriter sw = new StringWriter())
        {
            using (XmlTextWriter writer = new XmlTextWriter(sw))
            {
                // add formatting so the XML is easy to read in the log
                writer.Formatting = Formatting.Indented;

                serializer.WriteObject(writer, dict);

                writer.Flush();

                return sw.ToString();
            }
        }
    }