Parsing a complex JSON result with C#

Question

I am trying to parse the following complex JSON result, which is returned from the Zoho Crm API:

{
"response":
{
    "result":
    {
        "Contacts":
        {
            "row":
            [
                {
                    "no":"1",
                    "FL":
                    [
                        {
                            "content":"555555000000123456",
                            "val":"CONTACTID"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"555555000000012345",
                            "val":"SMOWNERID"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"John Doe",
                            "val":"Contact Owner"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"Pete",
                            "val":"First Name"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"Smith",
                            "val":"Last Name"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"[email protected]",
                            "val":"Email"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"5555551000000012346",
                            "val":"SMCREATORID"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"Jane Doe",
                            "val":"Created By"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"555555000000012347",
                            "val":"MODIFIEDBY"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"Doris Doe",
                            "val":"Modified By"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"2013-06-14 17:24:10",
                            "val":"Created Time"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"2013-06-14 17:24:10",
                            "val":"Modified Time"
                        },
                        {
                            "content":"2013-06-14 17:28:05",
                            "val":"Last Activity Time"
                        }
                    ]
                },
                {
                    ...
                }
            ]
        }
    },
    "uri":"/crm/private/json/Contacts/getRecords"
}

}

Here is how my Object looks:

public class Contact
{
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "CONTACTID")]
    public string ContactID { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "SMOWNERID")]
    public string OwnerID { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Contact Owner")]
    public string ContactOwner { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "First Name")]
    public string FirstName { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Last Name")]
    public string LasName { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Email")]
    public string Email { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "SMCREATORID")]
    public string CreatorID { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Created By")]
    public string CreatedBy { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "MODIFIEDBY")]
    public string ModifiedByID { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Modified By")]
    public string ModifiedBy { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Created Time")]
    public DateTime CreatedTime { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Modified Time")]
    public DateTime ModifiedTime { get; set; }
    [JsonProperty(PropertyName = "Last Activity Time")]
    public DateTime LastActivityTime { get; set; }
}

The "row" pattern repeats (no 1, 2, 3 ...) so what I am basically trying to get is a Generic List of Objects of this type. I am trying to using JSON.NET, but I am open to other suggestions if it makes this any easier.

This doesn't work in this case obviously:

var response = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<Contact>(jsonString);

And neither does this:

var deserializedObjects = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<List<Contact>>(jsonString);

Here is a workaround I have put together to parse this using JavaScriptSerializer, but it is by far one of my worst code blocks ever!

            List<Contact> loContactList = new List<Contact>();
        Contact loContact = null;

        Dictionary<string, object> dictionary = new JavaScriptSerializer().Deserialize<Dictionary<string, object>>(jsonString);
        var response = (Dictionary<string, object>)dictionary["response"];
        var result = (Dictionary<string, object>)response["result"];
        var contacts = (Dictionary<string, object>)result["Contacts"];
        var row = (ArrayList)contacts["row"];

        foreach (var item in row)
        {
            var loArrayItem = (Dictionary<string, object>)item;
            var fl = (ArrayList)loArrayItem["FL"];

            loContact = new Contact();

            foreach (var contactitem in fl)
            {
                var contactdict = (Dictionary<string, object>)contactitem;
                string val = (string)contactdict["val"];
                string content = (string)contactdict["content"];

                if (val == "CONTACTID")
                {
                    loContact.ContactID = content;
                }
                else if (val == "SMOWNERID")
                {
                    loContact.OwnerID = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Contact Owner")
                {
                    loContact.ContactOwner = content;
                }
                else if (val == "First Name")
                {
                    loContact.FirstName = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Last Name")
                {
                    loContact.LastName = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Email")
                {
                    loContact.Email = content;
                }
                else if (val == "SMCREATORID")
                {
                    loContact.CreatorID = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Created By")
                {
                    loContact.CreatedBy = content;
                }
                else if (val == "MODIFIEDBY")
                {
                    loContact.ModifiedByID = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Modified By")
                {
                    loContact.ModifiedBy = content;
                }
                else if (val == "Created Time")
                {
                    loContact.CreatedTime = Convert.ToDateTime(content);
                }
                else if (val == "Modified Time")
                {
                    loContact.ModifiedTime = Convert.ToDateTime(content);
                }
                else if (val == "Last Activity Time")
                {
                    loContact.LastActivityTime = Convert.ToDateTime(content);
                }
            }

            loContactList.Add(loContact);
        }

I have gone through other similar posts on StackOverflow and none of them seem to provide a solution for this problem. Does anyone have a solution for this? My goal is to parse this JSON response in a more elegant way, which doesn't involve a million dictionary objects and ArrayList! Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Pete

Update 7/2/13:

Based on Manvik's suggestion, I put together the following additional solution:

    public class ResponseActual
{

    [JsonProperty("response")]
    public Response2 Response { get; set; }
}

public class Response2
{

    [JsonProperty("result")]
    public Result Result { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("uri")]
    public string Uri { get; set; }
}

public class Result
{

    [JsonProperty("Contacts")]
    public Contacts Contacts { get; set; }
}

public class Contacts
{

    [JsonProperty("row")]
    public IList<Row> Row { get; set; }
}

public class Row
{

    [JsonProperty("no")]
    public string No { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("FL")]
    public IList<FL> FL { get; set; }
}

public class FL
{

    [JsonProperty("content")]
    public string Content { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("val")]
    public string Val { get; set; }
}

List<Contact> loContactList = new List<Contact>();
Contact loContact = null;

ResponseActual respone = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<ResponseActual>(jsonString);

foreach (var row in respone.Response.Result.Contacts.Row)
{
    loContact = new Contact();

    var rowItem = row.FL.ToList();

    try { loContact.ContactID = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "CONTACTID").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.OwnerID = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "SMOWNERID").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.ContactOwner = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Contact Owner").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.FirstName = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "First Name").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.LastName = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Last Name").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.Email = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Email").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); } catch { }
    try { loContact.CreatorID = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "SMCREATORID").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.CreatedBy = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Created By").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.ModifiedByID = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "MODIFIEDBY").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.ModifiedBy = rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Modified By").Select(x => x.Content).Single(); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.CreatedTime = Convert.ToDateTime(rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Created Time").Select(x => x.Content).Single()); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.ModifiedTime = Convert.ToDateTime(rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Modified Time").Select(x => x.Content).Single()); }
    catch { }
    try { loContact.LastActivityTime = Convert.ToDateTime(rowItem.Where<FL>((s, t) => s.Val == "Last Activity Time").Select(x => x.Content).Single()); }
    catch { }

    loContactList.Add(loContact);
}

Solution

Use the below classes for de-serializing using JSON.Net

public class ResponseActual
{

    [JsonProperty("response")]
    public Response2 Response { get; set; }
}

public class Response2
{

    [JsonProperty("result")]
    public Result Result { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("uri")]
    public string Uri { get; set; }
}

public class Result
{

    [JsonProperty("Contacts")]
    public Contacts Contacts { get; set; }
}

public class Contacts
{

    [JsonProperty("row")]
    public IList<Row> Row { get; set; }
}

  public class Row
{

    [JsonProperty("no")]
    public string No { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("FL")]
    public IList<FL> FL { get; set; }
}

 public class FL
{

    [JsonProperty("content")]
    public string Content { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty("val")]
    public string Val { get; set; }
}

//To De-serialize
ResponseActual respone = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<ResponseActual>(jSON_sTRING)

//Get the contacts list
List<FL> contacts = respone.Response.Result.Contacts.Row[0].FL.ToList();

//Now Get the required value using LINQ
var value = contacts.Where<FL>((s, e) => s.Val =="Email").Select(x=>x.Content).Single();

You may also checkout this - Deserializing JSON to .NET object using Newtonsoft (or LINQ to JSON maybe?)

Comments

[DigiOz Multimedia]

Thank you for your hint. My question is how would I go about doing that?

[DigiOz Multimedia]

Thank you Manvik! Admittedly, I was looking for something a bit more automated, but this solution is certainly better then having all those nested Dictionaries.

[DigiOz Multimedia]

No! You wouldn't catch me dead exporting JSON like this! The credit entirely goes to the geniuses at zoho.com.