XmlReader.ReadInnerXml Method
[ This article is for Windows Phone 8 developers. If you’re developing for Windows 10, see the latest documentation. ]
When overridden in a derived class, reads all the content, including markup, as a string.
Assembly: System.Xml (in System.Xml.dll)
Return Value
Type: System.StringAll the XML content, including markup, in the current node. If the current node has no children, an empty string is returned.
If the current node is neither an element nor attribute, an empty string is returned.
| Exception | Condition |
|---|---|
| XmlException | The XML was not well-formed, or an error occurred while parsing the XML. |
This method returns all the content of the current node including the markup. The current node (start tag) and corresponding end node (end tag) are not returned. For example, if you had the following:
<node> this <child id="123"/> </node>
ReadInnerXml returns this <child id="123"/>
This method handles element and attribute nodes in the following manner:
Node type | Position before the call | XML fragment | Return value | Position after the call |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Element | On the item1 start tag. | <item1>text1</item1><item2>text2</item2> | text1 | On the item2 start tag. |
Attribute | On the attr1 attribute node. | <item attr1="val1" attr2="val2">text</item> | val1 | Remains on the attr1 attribute node. |
If the reader is positioned on a leaf node, calling ReadInnerXml is equivalent to calling Read. The method returns String.Empty (except for attribute nodes, in which case the value of the attribute is returned).
This method checks for well-formed XML.
The following example uses the ReadInnerXml method.
StringBuilder output = new StringBuilder(); // XmlXapResolver is the default resolver. using (XmlReader reader = XmlReader.Create("book.xml")) { // Moves the reader to the root element. reader.MoveToContent(); reader.ReadToFollowing("book"); // Note that ReadInnerXml only returns the markup of the node's children // so the book's attributes are not returned. output.AppendLine("Read the first book using ReadInnerXml..."); output.AppendLine(reader.ReadInnerXml()); reader.ReadToFollowing("book"); // ReadOuterXml returns the markup for the current node and its children // so the book's attributes are also returned. output.AppendLine("Read the second book using ReadOuterXml..."); output.AppendLine(reader.ReadOuterXml()); } OutputTextBlock.Text = output.ToString();
The example uses bool.xml file as input.
<bookstore>
<book genre='novel' ISBN='10-861003-324'>
<title>The Handmaid's Tale</title>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
<book genre='novel' ISBN='1-861001-57-5'>
<title>Pride And Prejudice</title>
<price>24.95</price>
</book>
</bookstore>