Change one field from string to json object in jackson

Question

I have a class where employeeDetails is being read from a data store as json string.

public class Employee {
  private String name;

  @JsonProperty("employeeDetails")
  @JsonSerialize(???)
  private String employeeDetailsBlob;

  // getters and setters
}

Now I want to return employeeDetails(dynamic type) as an object in my response. I have changed the name using @JsonProperty and all the examples I have is for using @JsonSerialize(using = Employee.class).

So my response should look like this

{name: "foo", employeeDetails: { age: 21 }}

What I am getting is

{name: "foo", employeeDetails: "{ age: 21 }"}

I can add @JsonSerialize to my class but then I have to handle all the fields myself and do something like this in the overridden method.

jgen.writeFieldName("employeeDetails");
SerializedString serializedString = new SerializedString(empl.getEmployeeDetailsBlob());
jgen.writeRawValue(serializedString);

Is there a way I can do it using annotations and that too only on the field I want to change from json string to json object.

If employeeDetailsBlob is a POJO then that will happen automatically. No need to specify anything — David Brossard, Oct 14 '19 at 13:25
Yes, it's a POJO. But I am getting a string, and I want a json object. — Abhijeet Ahuja, Oct 14 '19 at 13:26
By default you should be getting a JSON object, not a string — David Brossard, Oct 14 '19 at 13:26
I have added @JsonSerializer just for reference, in the actual code, it's not there and I am getting a string. — Abhijeet Ahuja, Oct 14 '19 at 13:28
Try to use [JsonRawValue](https://fasterxml.github.io/jackson-annotations/javadoc/2.10/com/fasterxml/jackson/annotation/JsonRawValue.html), and take a look at: [How to parse a Java List of already parsed JSON into a Big JSON?](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/57731892/how-to-parse-a-java-list-of-already-parsed-json-into-a-big-json/57762896#57762896) — Michał Ziober, Oct 14 '19 at 13:38
Yes sir, adding `@JsonRawValue` did the trick. Thanks heaps. — Abhijeet Ahuja, Oct 14 '19 at 13:46

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Oct 14 '19 at 13:47

1

Adding @JsonRawValue did the trick.

public class Employee {
   private String name;

   @JsonProperty("employeeDetails")
   @JsonRawValue
   private String employeeDetailsBlob;

   // getters and setters
}

answered Oct 14 '19 at 13:47

Abhijeet Ahuja

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Why are you keeping your field as a string? You said it was a POJO – David Brossard Oct 14 '19 at 14:06
I am reading it from a datastore and it comes out as a string and when I had to send the response, I need to send an object. – Abhijeet Ahuja Oct 14 '19 at 15:46
Ah, so you should have built a POJO from that string... But maybe that's Overkill – David Brossard Oct 14 '19 at 15:47
1

Yes, moreover I don't know the type of the employeeDetailsBlob – Abhijeet Ahuja Oct 14 '19 at 15:55
Thanks again @DavidBrossard – Abhijeet Ahuja Oct 14 '19 at 15:57

Change one field from string to json object in jackson

1 Answers1