Newbie question about POSTing xml file to RESTful rails app

Rails
1

I have a newbie question about creating a new item using REST in rails
1.2.

  1. I created my project:
    ‘rails mra -d sqlite3’

  2. I generate all I can:
    ‘cd mra’
    ‘script/generate scaffold_resource widget name:string
    description:string’

  3. I create database stuff:
    ‘rake db:migrate’

  4. I now have a basic app:
    ‘script/server’

I create a couple of widgets using the basic scaffolding forms.

  1. I browse ‘http://localhost:3000/widgets.xml’ I get a nice xml file
    out:

    <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?> baz-ness 1 baz foo-ness 2 foo

  2. I can use curl to POST a new widget to the app:
    ‘curl -d “widget[name]=bar” -d “widget[description]=bar-ness”
    http://localhost:3000/widgets’

With a default app generated this way, is there a way to use curl to
POST an XML file and generate a new widget? I do not think the
‘create’ method in widgets_controller.rb distinguishes between the two
URL’s used for a POST (/widgets and /widgets.xml) as far as how input
is handled, and I am not sure how params[:widget] is populated (other
than knowing that it is not populated correctly when I try something
like this:
‘curl -X POST -d
“foobarfoobar-ness</
widget>”
http://localhost:3000/widgets’

If I need to add code to parse the input XML file, where is the best
place to code this, as a helper method?

2

Thanks to both Zack and Rick.

I found that I was not indicating that my Content-Type as ‘text/xml’
in my curl command, and that is what is needed to trigger the XML
parsing.

Pretty cool stuff!

Just adding .xml to the filename works too. You don’t have to
specificially set content-type or accepts AFAIK.

–
Rick O.
http://weblog.techno-weenie.net
http://mephistoblog.com

3

On 1/30/07, tomPorter [email protected] wrote:

description:string’
out:
foo
URL’s used for a POST (/widgets and /widgets.xml) as far as how input
is handled, and I am not sure how params[:widget] is populated (other
than knowing that it is not populated correctly when I try something
like this:
‘curl -X POST -d
“foobarfoobar-ness</
widget>”
http://localhost:3000/widgets’

If I need to add code to parse the input XML file, where is the best
place to code this, as a helper method?

No code needed, check out Beast for a simple, working example.

http://weblog.techno-weenie.net/2006/12/12/taking-ares-out-for-a-test-drive

map.resources automatically recognizes urls with formats (extensions
like xml and js by default). XML has a default param parser that uses
the xmlsimple lib to parse that xml into a hash in params[:widget].
Your controller code should stay the same then. If you have custom
formats (atom, svn xml, json, whatever), you’ll have to write your own
param parser.

–
Rick O.
http://weblog.techno-weenie.net
http://mephistoblog.com

4

On Jan 30, 11:14 am, “Zack C.” [email protected] wrote:

You also might use the filename notation with curl to avoid having to
type the xml message on the command line. Just create a file
new_widget.xml and then send it using curl:

curl -H “Content-Type: text/xml” -d @new_widget.xml -X POSThttp://localhost:3000/widgets

–
Zack C.http://depixelate.com- Hide quoted text -

Thanks to both Zack and Rick.

I found that I was not indicating that my Content-Type as ‘text/xml’
in my curl command, and that is what is needed to trigger the XML
parsing.

Pretty cool stuff!

5

I will have to experiment with just submitting an XML file, but i
thought when I tried this w/o the Content-Type header ,it created a
null widget: ID only blank attributes.

6

On 1/30/07, Rick O. [email protected] wrote:

'cd mra'

      <description>foo-ness</description>

POST an XML file and generate a new widget? I do not think the
If I need to add code to parse the input XML file, where is the best
formats (atom, svn xml, json, whatever), you’ll have to write your own
param parser.

–
Rick O.
http://weblog.techno-weenie.net
http://mephistoblog.com

You also might use the filename notation with curl to avoid having to
type the xml message on the command line. Just create a file
new_widget.xml and then send it using curl:

curl -H “Content-Type: text/xml” -d @new_widget.xml -X POST
http://localhost:3000/widgets

–
Zack C.
http://depixelate.com