SimpleXML: handle CDATA tag presence in node value

Question

I need to save <![CDATA[]]> tag when I parse XML document.

For example, I have node:

<Dest><![CDATA[some text...]]></Dest>

In xml file may be present nodes without CDATA.

Then I process all the nodes in loop:

$dom = simplexml_load_file($path);
foreach($dom->children() as $child) {
 $nodeValue = (string) $child;
}

As a result, when I process node in example above - $nodeValue = some text...

But I need $nodeValue = <![CDATA[some text...]]>

There is any way to do this?

File example:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<Root>
  <Params>
    <param>text</param>
    <anotherParam>text</anotherParam>
  </Params>
  <Content>
    <String>
      <Source>some another text</Source>
      <Dest>some another text 2</Dest>
    </String>
    <String>
      <Source>some another text 3</Source>
      <Dest><![CDATA[some text...]]></Dest>
    </String>
  </Content>
</Root>

Can you give an exemple of a XML file ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 13:52 — Sylvain Attoumani, Jun 22 '17 at 13:52

Sylvain Attoumani · Answer 1 · 2017-06-22T15:09:10.310

0

If you want to add CDATA to all element who doesn't have it, you can do that :

$dom = simplexml_load_file($path);
foreach($dom->children() as $child) {
     if(strpos((string) $child,'CDATA')){
         $nodeValue = (string) $child)
     }
     else {
         $nodeValue = "<![CDATA[".((string) $child)."]]>";
     }
 }

with that you will have $nodeValue = '<![CDATA[some text...]]>'

if you want to just have the element where there is CDATA you can do that :

$dom = simplexml_load_file($path);
foreach($dom->children() as $child) {
     if(strpos((string) $child,'CDATA')){
         $nodeValue = (string) $child;
     }
 }

with that you will have $nodeValue = '<![CDATA[some text...]]>'

if you want the element without CDATA and add it you can do that :

$dom = simplexml_load_file($path);
foreach($dom->children() as $child) {
     if(!strpos((string) $child,'CDATA')){
         $notValue ="<![CDATA[".((string) $child)."]]>";
     }
 }

with that you wil have $nodeValue = '<![CDATA[some another text 3]]>'

edited Jun 22 '17 at 15:09

answered Jun 22 '17 at 13:45

Sylvain Attoumani

1,213
1
15
34

In xml file may be present nodes without CDATA – Meadow Lizard Jun 22 '17 at 13:49
How do you know wich have has to have CDATA and wich one doesn't ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 13:50
@AndrewAndrew Oh, you have an xml file where some of the value are `<![CDATA[some text...]]>` and with your algo it deletes the CDATA ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 13:52
When I parse xml-file I don't know anything about file structure etc. Some nodes may have CDATA, some may haven't, I can't know that. But while parsing, I need to handle it – Meadow Lizard Jun 22 '17 at 13:53
@AndrewAndrew Ok so if node Contains CDATA you just rewrite it, if not, you add CDATA ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 13:55
If node contains CDATA, in some way I will process it – Meadow Lizard Jun 22 '17 at 14:00
@AndrewAndrew I don't quit understand what you want so i gave you 3 possibilities. Try to see if what you need is in there – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 14:06
@AndrewAndrew Why ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 14:54
Because `(string) $child` no longer has tag CDATA. SimpleXML skip it – Meadow Lizard Jun 22 '17 at 14:57
@AndrewAndrew Do you realise what you are asking is not very clear? Wich one do you talk about ? the first or the second one ? If that is the second one, whatd do you want to do when there is no CDATA ? – Sylvain Attoumani Jun 22 '17 at 14:59

score 0 · Accepted Answer · answered Jun 27 '17 at 15:19

As far as a parser like SimpleXML is concerned, the <![CDATA[ is not part of the text content of the XML element, it's just part of the serialization of that content. A similar confusion is discussed here: PHP, SimpleXML, decoding entities in CDATA

What you need to look at is the "inner XML" of that element, which is tricky in SimpleXML (->asXML() will give you the "outer XML", e.g. <Dest><![CDATA[some text...]]></Dest>).

Your best bet here is to use the DOM which gives you more access to the detailed structure of the document, rather than trying to give you the content, so distinguishes "text nodes" and "CDATA nodes". However, it's worth double-checking that you do actually need this, as for 99.9% of use cases, you shouldn't care whether somebody sent you <foo>bar & baz</foo> or <foo><![CDATA[bar & baz]]></foo>, since by definition they represent the same string.

SimpleXML: handle CDATA tag presence in node value

2 Answers2