Often you may want to use PowerShell to convert an XML object to a string.
You can use the following methods to do so:
Method 1: Use OuterXml
[xml]$my_xml = Get-Content my_data.xml
$my_xml.OuterXml
This particular example will convert the XML object named $my_xml to a string.
Method 2: Use OuterXml and PreserveWhiteSpace
$my_xml = [xml]::new()
$my_xml.PreserveWhitespace = $true
$my_xml.Load('my_data.xml')
$my_xml.OuterXml
This particular example will output the XML object named $my_xml to a string while preserving the whitespace of the formatting.
The following examples show how to use each method in practice.
Example 1: Use OuterXml to Convert XML to String
Suppose that we have an XML file named my_data.xml in our current directory.
We can use the Get-Content cmdlet to view the contents of this file:
We can use the following syntax to load this XML file into an object named $my_xml and then convert the object to a string:
[xml]$my_xml = Get-Content my_data.xml
$my_xml.OuterXml
The following screenshot shows how to use this syntax in practice:
Notice that the output displays the XML object as a string.
Example 2: Use OuterXml and PreserveWhiteSpace to Convert XML to String
Once again, suppose that we have an XML file named my_data.xml in our current directory:
We can use the following syntax to load this XML file into an object named $my_xml and then convert the object to a string, while preserving the whitespace in the formatting of the file:
$my_xml = [xml]::new()
$my_xml.PreserveWhitespace = $true
$my_xml.Load('my_data.xml')
$my_xml.OuterXml
The following screenshot shows how to use this syntax in practice:
The output displays the XML object as a string.
Notice that the whitespace in the formatting of the file has been preserved.
Note: You can find the complete documentation for the PreserveWhiteSpace property in PowerShell here.
Related Tutorials
The following tutorials explain how to perform other common tasks in PowerShell:
PowerShell: How to Update Content in XML File
PowerShell: How to Edit a JSON File
PowerShell: How to Loop Through Each Line of CSV File
