JSON deserialization into List

Question

I guess this is easy, but I am new and cannot find a fast answer to this:

I want to obtain a list of file names (List<string>) in a .Net 2.0 desktop app, using WebClient requesting to a WebAPI REST service.

So, I have this code in the desktop app:

using (var client = new WebClient())
{
   client.Headers[HttpRequestHeader.Accept] = "application/json";
   var resultString = client.DownloadString("http://localhost:3788/api/file?src=X&dest=Y");
}

and a WebAPI action like this in the service:

public IEnumerable<string> GetFiles([FromUri]string src, [FromUri]string dest)
{
   // some code here
}

How would I convert the resultString, which is a JSON String, to a List<String> ?

Do I have to use JsonDataContractSerializer?

I have to make sure I return only the filenames first and not including the entire path, so I have to make some adjustments — Learner, Jan 18 '14 at 23:12

score 1 · Accepted Answer · edited May 23 '17 at 12:03

1

Look at this SO question and answer. The code there outlines what you would do. The key is to reference the Newtonsoft.Json namespace (add it from a NuGet package) and use the DeserializeObject generic method. The answer shows other things you can do with results.

edited May 23 '17 at 12:03

Community

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answered Jan 18 '14 at 23:10

Sixto Saez

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Thanks for this, I will give it a try. So, there are these 2 libs: Newtonsoft.Json and JSON.NET. Any preference? is there something built-in .net? – Learner Jan 18 '14 at 23:18
@Cristi they are the same. – L.B Jan 18 '14 at 23:18
Yes, @L.B. is right. The .NET namespace is `Newtonsoft.Json` but it's probably better known as the Json.NET library. – Sixto Saez Jan 18 '14 at 23:21
Oh... this shows you how noob I am :) Thanks. Let's see if I get the expected results – Learner Jan 18 '14 at 23:24
Yeah, it worked nicely using: JsonConvert.DeserializeObject>(resultString); – Learner Jan 19 '14 at 14:19

JSON deserialization into List

1 Answers1