How to read unknown XML structure file to Array

[abdoelmasry]

Hi Pros

I need help to read xml to array,

xml file structure is unknown, and has many elements and subelements,

so it should be imported to multiple array.

here is xml file as example:
file name: test.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="windows-1256" ?>
<books id="1">
<category id="1" name="cat 1">
<book id="1" name="cat 1 book1">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 1 - book1 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 1 - book1 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 1 - book1 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 1 - book1 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="2" name="cat 1 book2">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 1 - book2 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 1 - book2 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 1 - book2 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 1 - book2 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="3" name="cat 1 book3">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 1 - book3 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 1 - book3 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 1 - book3 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 1 - book3 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
</category>
<category id="2" name="cat 2">
<book id="1" name="cat 2 book1">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 2 - book1 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 2 - book1 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 2 - book1 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 2 - book1 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="2" name="cat 2 book2">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 2 - book2 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 2 - book2 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 2 - book2 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 2 - book2 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="3" name="cat 2 book3">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 2 - book3 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 2 - book3 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 2 - book3 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 2 - book3 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
</category>
<category id="3" name="cat 3">
<book id="1" name="cat 3 book1">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 3 - book1 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 3 - book1 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 3 - book1 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 3 - book1 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="2" name="cat 3 book2">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 3 - book2 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 3 - book2 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 3 - book2 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 3 - book2 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="3" name="cat 3 book3">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 3 - book3 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 3 - book3 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 3 - book3 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 3 - book3 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
</category>
<category id="4" name="cat 4">
<book id="1" name="cat 4 book1">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 4 - book1 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 4 - book1 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 4 - book1 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 4 - book1 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="2" name="cat 4 book2">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 4 - book2 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 4 - book2 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 4 - book2 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 4 - book2 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="3" name="cat 4 book3">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 4 - book3 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 4 - book3 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 4 - book3 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 4 - book3 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
</category>
<category id="5" name="cat 5">
<book id="1" name="cat 5 book1">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 5 - book1 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 5 - book1 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 5 - book1 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 5 - book1 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="2" name="cat 5 book2">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 5 - book2 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 5 - book2 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 5 - book2 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 5 - book2 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
<book id="3" name="cat 5 book3">
<minibook id="1" name="cat 5 - book3 - minibook 1"></minibook>
<minibook id="2" name="cat 5 - book3 - minibook 2"></minibook>
<minibook id="3" name="cat 5 - book3 - minibook 3"></minibook>
<minibook id="4" name="cat 5 - book3 - minibook 4"></minibook>
</book>
</category>
</books>

my php code is not working, here is it:

<?php

//get Element attributes
function get_attributes($element){
$attrib_array=array();
$element_attributes=$element->attributes;
foreach($element_attributes as $attrib){
$attrib_array[$attrib->name]=$attrib->value;
}
return $attrib_array;
}

//get xml Elements to array
function get_elements($Elements_list){
foreach($Elements_list as $xml_element){
// NodeType (1) means this is Element not #text or CDATA
if($xml_element->nodeType=='1'){
//get Element id for Array Key
$elemid=$xml_element->getAttribute('id');
$elemtagname=$xml_element->tagName;
$currentlevel=array();
//Get Element Attributes if it has
//If this element Has Attributes it will be added to Array '$attr_array'
$attr_array=array();
if($xml_element->hasAttributes()){
$attr_array=$this->get_attributes($xml_element);
}
$currentlevel[$elemid]['tagname']=$xml_element->tagName;
$currentlevel[$elemid]['attribute']=$attr_array;
$currentlevel[$elemid]['content']=$xml_element->nodeValue;
//get child Nodes for every Element (if exists)
if($xml_element->hasChildNodes()){
$currentlevel[$elemid]['child']=$this->get_elements($xml_element->childNodes);
}
}
}
return $currentlevel;
}

//cals Function
$xml_file=new DOMDocument();
$xml_file->load("test.xml");
$xml_childs=$xml_file->getElementsByTagName("books");
$xml_to_array=get_elements($xml_childs);

// Array $xml_to_array should hold all Xml data
?>

the problem is : i cann't build xml data (elements,child nodes) properly to array.

thank you

[Dormilich]

what do you need the array for?

[abdoelmasry]

i am php developer, i am working a lot with xml files,

for example: i develop php script works with 100 xml files,

by the normal way, i should be know the file structure to use this way:

getElementByTag name();

and that will force me to write 100 functions to read the 100 xml files,

i need to create class to read any xml file, it will be so easy to pass xml files path to class, and class read all data and dump it to array

[binhvtt]

You can convert XML to Json and Json to array.

[abdoelmasry]

it should be by PHP5, no client side codes.

[Dormilich]

SimpleXML offers a fine XML reading class.

[abdoelmasry]

i checked it before coming here,

no reference to Read xml file to Multi Dimensional Array.

[Dormilich]

normally you don’t need to convert XML to an multidimensiona l array. you have Iterators for that which can operate on the SimpleXMLElemen t objects.