XmlNode.SelectSingleNode Method

Definition

Selects the first XmlNode that matches the XPath expression.

Overloads

SelectSingleNode(String)

Selects the first XmlNode that matches the XPath expression.

SelectSingleNode(String, XmlNamespaceManager)

Selects the first XmlNode that matches the XPath expression. Any prefixes found in the XPath expression are resolved using the supplied XmlNamespaceManager.

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)

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>&apos;Emma&apos;</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)

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>&apos;Emma&apos;</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).

See also

Applies to