Php write xml string to file

Many examples in this reference require an XML string. Instead of repeating this string in every example, we put it into a file which we include in each example. This included file is shown in the following example section. Alternatively, you could create an XML document and read it with simplexml_load_file[].

Example #1 Include file example.php with XML string



 
  PHP: Behind the Parser
  
   
    Ms. Coder
    Onlivia Actora
   
   
    Mr. Coder
    El ActÓr
   
  
  
   So, this language. It's like, a programming language. Or is it a
   scripting language? All is revealed in this thrilling horror spoof
   of a documentary.
  
  
   PHP solves all my web problems
  
  7
  5
 

XML;
?>

The simplicity of SimpleXML appears most clearly when one extracts a string or number from a basic XML document.

Example #2 Getting

The above example will output:

   So, this language. It's like, a programming language. Or is it a
   scripting language? All is revealed in this thrilling horror spoof
   of a documentary.

Accessing elements within an XML document that contain characters not permitted under PHP's naming convention [e.g. the hyphen] can be accomplished by encapsulating the element name within braces and the apostrophe.

Example #3 Getting

The above example will output:

PHP solves all my web problems

Example #4 Accessing non-unique elements in SimpleXML

When multiple instances of an element exist as children of a single parent element, normal iteration techniques apply.

The above example will output:

Ms. Coder played by Onlivia Actora
Mr. Coder played by El ActÓr

Note:

Properties [$movies->movie in previous example] are not arrays. They are iterable and accessible objects.

Example #5 Using attributes

So far, we have only covered the work of reading element names and their values. SimpleXML can also access element attributes. Access attributes of an element just as you would elements of an array.

The above example will output:

Example #6 Comparing Elements and Attributes with Text

To compare an element or attribute with a string or pass it into a function that requires a string, you must cast it to a string using [string]. Otherwise, PHP treats the element as an object.

The above example will output:

My favorite movie.PHP: Behind the Parser

Example #7 Comparing Two Elements

Two SimpleXMLElements are considered different even if they point to the same element.

The above example will output:

Example #8 Using XPath

SimpleXML includes built-in XPath support. To find all elements:

'//' serves as a wildcard. To specify absolute paths, omit one of the slashes.

The above example will output:

Ms. Coder played by Onlivia Actora
Mr. Coder played by El ActÓr

Example #9 Setting values

Data in SimpleXML doesn't have to be constant. The object allows for manipulation of all of its elements.

The above example will output:

 
  PHP: Behind the Parser
  
   
    Miss Coder
    Onlivia Actora
   
   
    Mr. Coder
    El ActÓr
   
  
  
   So, this language. It's like, a programming language. Or is it a
   scripting language? All is revealed in this thrilling horror spoof
   of a documentary.
  
  
   PHP solves all my web problems
  
  7
  5
 

Example #10 Adding elements and attributes

SimpleXML has had the ability to easily add children and attributes.

The above example will output:

 
  PHP: Behind the Parser
  
   
    Ms. Coder
    Onlivia Actora
   
   
    Mr. Coder
    El ActÓr
   
  Mr. ParserJohn Doe
  
   So, this language. It's like, a programming language. Or is it a
   scripting language? All is revealed in this thrilling horror spoof
   of a documentary.
  
  
   PHP solves all my web problems
  
  7
  5
 PG

Example #11 DOM Interoperability

PHP has a mechanism to convert XML nodes between SimpleXML and DOM formats. This example shows how one might change a DOM element to SimpleXML.

The above example will output:

rowan dot collins at gmail dot com ¶

7 years ago

There is a common "trick" often proposed to convert a SimpleXML object to an array, by running it through json_encode[] and then json_decode[]. I'd like to explain why this is a bad idea.

Most simply, because the whole point of SimpleXML is to be easier to use and more powerful than a plain array. For instance, you can write and it means the same thing as , regardless of how many bar or baz elements there are in the XML; and if you write you get all the string content of that node - including CDATA sections - regardless of whether it also has child elements or attributes. You also have access to namespace information, the ability to make simple edits to the XML, and even the ability to "import" into a DOM object, for much more powerful manipulation. All of this is lost by turning the object into an array rather than reading understanding the examples on this page.

Additionally, because it is not designed for this purpose, the conversion to JSON and back will actually lose information in some situations. For instance, any elements or attributes in a namespace will simply be discarded, and any text content will be discarded if an element also has children or attributes. Sometimes, this won't matter, but if you get in the habit of converting everything to arrays, it's going to sting you eventually.

Of course, you could write a smarter conversion, which didn't have these limitations, but at that point, you are getting no value out of SimpleXML at all, and should just use the lower level XML Parser functions, or the XMLReader class, to create your structure. You still won't have the extra convenience functionality of SimpleXML, but that's your loss.

jishcem at gmail dot com ¶

9 years ago

For me it was easier to use arrays than objects,

So, I used this code,

$xml = simplexml_load_file['xml_file.xml'];

    $json_string = json_encode[$xml];

    $result_array = json_decode[$json_string, TRUE];

Hope it would help someone

Anonymous ¶

5 years ago

If your xml string contains booleans encoded with "0" and "1", you will run into problems when you cast the element directly to bool:

$xmlstr =

   
   
   

EOT;$xmlDoc = new SimpleXMLElement[$xml];

echo