XmlNode.SelectSingleNode Method
Definition
Important
Some information relates to prerelease product that may be substantially modified before it’s released. Microsoft makes no warranties, express or implied, with respect to the information provided here.
Selects the first XmlNode
that matches the XPath expression.
Overloads
SelectSingleNode(String) |
Selects the first |
SelectSingleNode(String, XmlNamespaceManager) |
Selects the first |
Examples
The following example returns the first book with the matching author name. The XmlNamespaceManager
resolves the default namespace in the XPath expression.
#using <System.Xml.dll>
using namespace System;
using namespace System::IO;
using namespace System::Xml;
int main()
{
XmlDocument^ doc = gcnew XmlDocument;
doc->Load( L"newbooks.xml" );
// Create an XmlNamespaceManager to resolve the default namespace.
XmlNamespaceManager^ nsmgr = gcnew XmlNamespaceManager( doc->NameTable );
nsmgr->AddNamespace( L"bk", L"urn:newbooks-schema" );
// Select the first book written by an author whose last name is Atwood.
XmlNode^ book;
XmlElement^ root = doc->DocumentElement;
book = root->SelectSingleNode( L"descendant::bk:book[bk:author/bk:last-name='Atwood']", nsmgr );
Console::WriteLine( book->OuterXml );
return 0;
}
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Xml;
public class Sample
{
public static void Main()
{
XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
doc.Load("newbooks.xml");
// Create an XmlNamespaceManager to resolve the default namespace.
XmlNamespaceManager nsmgr = new XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable);
nsmgr.AddNamespace("bk", "urn:newbooks-schema");
// Select the first book written by an author whose last name is Atwood.
XmlNode book;
XmlElement root = doc.DocumentElement;
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::bk:book[bk:author/bk:last-name='Atwood']", nsmgr);
Console.WriteLine(book.OuterXml);
}
}
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Xml
Public Class Sample
Public Shared Sub Main()
Dim doc As XmlDocument = New XmlDocument()
doc.Load("newbooks.xml")
'Create an XmlNamespaceManager for resolving namespaces.
Dim nsmgr As XmlNamespaceManager = New XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable)
nsmgr.AddNamespace("bk", "urn:newbooks-schema")
'Select the book written by an author whose last name is Atwood.
Dim book As XmlNode
Dim root As XmlElement = doc.DocumentElement
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::bk:book[bk:author/bk:last-name='Atwood']", nsmgr)
Console.WriteLine(book.OuterXml)
End Sub
End Class
The example uses the file, newbooks.xml
, as input.
<?xml version='1.0'?>
<bookstore xmlns="urn:newbooks-schema">
<book genre="novel" style="hardcover">
<title>The Handmaid's Tale</title>
<author>
<first-name>Margaret</first-name>
<last-name>Atwood</last-name>
</author>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" style="other">
<title>The Poisonwood Bible</title>
<author>
<first-name>Barbara</first-name>
<last-name>Kingsolver</last-name>
</author>
<price>11.99</price>
</book>
</bookstore>
Remarks
XPath expressions can include namespaces. Namespace resolution is supported using the XmlNamespaceManager
. If the XPath expression includes a prefix, the prefix and namespace URI pair must be added to the XmlNamespaceManager
.
Note
If the XPath expression does not include a prefix, it is assumed that the namespace URI is the empty namespace. If your XML includes a default namespace, you must still add a prefix and namespace URI to the XmlNamespaceManager
; otherwise, you will not get any nodes selected. For more information, see Select Nodes Using XPath Navigation.
SelectSingleNode(String)
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
Selects the first XmlNode
that matches the XPath expression.
public:
System::Xml::XmlNode ^ SelectSingleNode(System::String ^ xpath);
public System.Xml.XmlNode? SelectSingleNode (string xpath);
public System.Xml.XmlNode SelectSingleNode (string xpath);
member this.SelectSingleNode : string -> System.Xml.XmlNode
Public Function SelectSingleNode (xpath As String) As XmlNode
Parameters
- xpath
- String
The XPath expression. See XPath Examples.
Returns
The first XmlNode
that matches the XPath query or null
if no matching node is found.
Exceptions
The XPath expression contains a prefix.
Examples
The following example changes the price of the first Jane Austen book.
#using <System.Xml.dll>
using namespace System;
using namespace System::IO;
using namespace System::Xml;
int main()
{
XmlDocument^ doc = gcnew XmlDocument;
doc->Load( "booksort.xml" );
XmlNode^ book;
XmlNode^ root = doc->DocumentElement;
book = root->SelectSingleNode( "descendant::book[author/last-name='Austen']" );
//Change the price on the book.
book->LastChild->InnerText = "15.95";
Console::WriteLine( "Display the modified XML document...." );
doc->Save( Console::Out );
}
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Xml;
public class Sample {
public static void Main() {
XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
doc.Load("booksort.xml");
XmlNode book;
XmlNode root = doc.DocumentElement;
book=root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::book[author/last-name='Austen']");
//Change the price on the book.
book.LastChild.InnerText="15.95";
Console.WriteLine("Display the modified XML document....");
doc.Save(Console.Out);
}
}
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Xml
public class Sample
public shared sub Main()
'Create the XmlDocument.
Dim doc as XmlDocument = new XmlDocument()
doc.Load("booksort.xml")
Dim book as XmlNode
Dim root as XmlNode = doc.DocumentElement
book=root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::book[author/last-name='Austen']")
'Change the price on the book.
book.LastChild.InnerText="15.95"
Console.WriteLine("Display the modified XML document....")
doc.Save(Console.Out)
end sub
end class
The example uses the file, booksort.xml
, as input.
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!-- A fragment of a book store inventory database -->
<bookstore xmlns:bk="urn:samples">
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1997" bk:ISBN="1-861001-57-8">
<title>Pride And Prejudice</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>24.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1992" bk:ISBN="1-861002-30-1">
<title>The Handmaid's Tale</title>
<author>
<first-name>Margaret</first-name>
<last-name>Atwood</last-name>
</author>
<price>29.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1991" bk:ISBN="1-861001-57-6">
<title>Emma</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1982" bk:ISBN="1-861001-45-3">
<title>Sense and Sensibility</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
</bookstore>
Remarks
If the XPath expression requires namespace resolution, you must use the SelectSingleNode
overload which takes an XmlNamespaceManager as its argument. The XmlNamespaceManager
is used to resolve namespaces.
Note
If the XPath expression does not include a prefix, it is assumed that the namespace URI is the empty namespace. If your XML includes a default namespace, you must still use the XmlNamespaceManager
and add a prefix and namespace URI to it; otherwise, you will not get a selected node. For more information, see Select Nodes Using XPath Navigation.
Note
A common issue when formulating XPath expressions is how to include a single quote (') or double quote (") in the expression. If you have to search for a value that includes a single quote, you must enclose the string in double quotes. If you need to search for a value that includes a double quote, you must enclose the string in single quotes.
For example, suppose you have the following XML:
<bookstore>
<book>
<title>'Emma'</title>
</book>
</bookstore>
The following Visual Basic code selects an element that contains single quotes:
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::book[title=""'Emma'""]")
This method is a Microsoft extension to the Document Object Model (DOM).
See also
Applies to
SelectSingleNode(String, XmlNamespaceManager)
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
- Source:
- XmlNode.cs
Selects the first XmlNode
that matches the XPath expression. Any prefixes found in the XPath expression are resolved using the supplied XmlNamespaceManager.
public:
System::Xml::XmlNode ^ SelectSingleNode(System::String ^ xpath, System::Xml::XmlNamespaceManager ^ nsmgr);
public System.Xml.XmlNode? SelectSingleNode (string xpath, System.Xml.XmlNamespaceManager nsmgr);
public System.Xml.XmlNode SelectSingleNode (string xpath, System.Xml.XmlNamespaceManager nsmgr);
member this.SelectSingleNode : string * System.Xml.XmlNamespaceManager -> System.Xml.XmlNode
Public Function SelectSingleNode (xpath As String, nsmgr As XmlNamespaceManager) As XmlNode
Parameters
- xpath
- String
The XPath expression. See XPath Examples.
- nsmgr
- XmlNamespaceManager
An XmlNamespaceManager to use for resolving namespaces for prefixes in the XPath expression.
Returns
The first XmlNode
that matches the XPath query or null
if no matching node is found.
Exceptions
The XPath expression contains a prefix which is not defined in the XmlNamespaceManager
.
Examples
The following example selects the book with the matching ISBN value.
#using <System.Xml.dll>
using namespace System;
using namespace System::IO;
using namespace System::Xml;
int main()
{
XmlDocument^ doc = gcnew XmlDocument;
doc->Load( "booksort.xml" );
//Create an XmlNamespaceManager for resolving namespaces.
XmlNamespaceManager^ nsmgr = gcnew XmlNamespaceManager( doc->NameTable );
nsmgr->AddNamespace( "bk", "urn:samples" );
//Select the book node with the matching attribute value.
XmlNode^ book;
XmlElement^ root = doc->DocumentElement;
book = root->SelectSingleNode( "descendant::book->Item[@bk:ISBN='1-861001-57-6']", nsmgr );
Console::WriteLine( book->OuterXml );
}
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Xml;
public class Sample
{
public static void Main()
{
XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();
doc.Load("booksort.xml");
//Create an XmlNamespaceManager for resolving namespaces.
XmlNamespaceManager nsmgr = new XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable);
nsmgr.AddNamespace("bk", "urn:samples");
//Select the book node with the matching attribute value.
XmlNode book;
XmlElement root = doc.DocumentElement;
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::book[@bk:ISBN='1-861001-57-6']", nsmgr);
Console.WriteLine(book.OuterXml);
}
}
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Xml
public class Sample
public shared sub Main()
Dim doc as XmlDocument = new XmlDocument()
doc.Load("booksort.xml")
'Create an XmlNamespaceManager for resolving namespaces.
Dim nsmgr as XmlNamespaceManager = new XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable)
nsmgr.AddNamespace("bk", "urn:samples")
'Select the book node with the matching attribute value.
Dim book as XmlNode
Dim root as XmlElement = doc.DocumentElement
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::book[@bk:ISBN='1-861001-57-6']", nsmgr)
Console.WriteLine(book.OuterXml)
end sub
end class
The example uses the file, booksort.xml
, as input.
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!-- A fragment of a book store inventory database -->
<bookstore xmlns:bk="urn:samples">
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1997" bk:ISBN="1-861001-57-8">
<title>Pride And Prejudice</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>24.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1992" bk:ISBN="1-861002-30-1">
<title>The Handmaid's Tale</title>
<author>
<first-name>Margaret</first-name>
<last-name>Atwood</last-name>
</author>
<price>29.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1991" bk:ISBN="1-861001-57-6">
<title>Emma</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
<book genre="novel" publicationdate="1982" bk:ISBN="1-861001-45-3">
<title>Sense and Sensibility</title>
<author>
<first-name>Jane</first-name>
<last-name>Austen</last-name>
</author>
<price>19.95</price>
</book>
</bookstore>
Remarks
XPath expressions can include namespaces. Namespace resolution is supported using the XmlNamespaceManager
. If the XPath expression includes a prefix, the prefix and namespace URI pair must be added to the XmlNamespaceManager
.
Note
If the XPath expression does not include a prefix, it is assumed that the namespace URI is the empty namespace. If your XML includes a default namespace, you must still add a prefix and namespace URI to the XmlNamespaceManager
; otherwise, you will not get a node selected. For more information, see Select Nodes Using XPath Navigation.
For example, if you had the following XML:
<bookstore xmlns="http://www.lucernepublishing.com">
<book>
<title>Pride And Prejudice</title>
</book>
</bookstore>
The following C# code selects the first book node:
XmlNamespaceManager nsmgr = new XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable);
nsmgr.AddNamespace("ab", "http://www.lucernepublishing.com");
XmlNode book = doc.SelectSingleNode("//ab:book", nsmgr);
Note
A common issue when formulating XPath expressions is how to include a single quote (') or double quote (") in the expression. If you have to search for a value that includes a single quote, you must enclose the string in double quotes. If you need to search for a value that includes a double quote, you must enclose the string in single quotes.
For example, suppose you have the following XML:
<bookstore xmlns="http://www.lucernepublishing.com">
<book>
<title>'Emma'</title>
</book>
</bookstore>
The following Visual Basic code selects an element that contains single quotes:
Dim nsmgr As XmlNamespaceManager = New XmlNamespaceManager(doc.NameTable)
nsmgr.AddNamespace("ab", "http://www.lucernepublishing.com")
book = root.SelectSingleNode("descendant::ab:book[ab:title=""'Emma'""]", nsmgr)
This method is a Microsoft extension to the Document Object Model (DOM).