I have an XML file which roughly describes a database schema I am inheriting
I want to generate POCO objects for this file to give me a head start with the business obje
You could (and should) define a xsd which describes your XML file. From this XSD you can generate classes using xsd.exe.
If you need more control over your code generation (e.g. you aren't happy with the output of xsd.exe, want to add attributes, make changes, ...) you can use System.Xml.Serialization.XmlSchemaImporter, System.Xml.Serialization.XmlCodeExporter and CodeDom to adjust the generated code.
Try SimpleXmlToCode .It does not require an XSD or anything. It generates good serializable code instantly.
Best of all, it's opensource.
Yes,it can be done. Take a look at T4 text templetes http://www.hanselman.com/blog/T4TextTemplateTransformationToolkitCodeGenerationBestKeptVisualStudioSecret.aspx