I want to generate some XML in a stored procedure based on data in a table.
The following insert allows me to add many nodes but they have to be hard-coded or use va
Use sql:column instead of sql:variable. You can find detailed info here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms191214.aspx
Have you tried nesting FOR XML PATH scalar valued functions? With the nesting technique, you can brake your SQL into very managable/readable elemental pieces
Disclaimer: the following, while adapted from a working example, has not itself been literally tested
Some reference links for the general audience
The simplest, lowest level nested node example
Consider the following invocation
DECLARE @NestedInput_SpecificDogNameId int
SET @NestedInput_SpecificDogNameId = 99
SELECT [dbo].[udfGetLowestLevelNestedNode_SpecificDogName]
(@NestedInput_SpecificDogNameId)
Let's say had udfGetLowestLevelNestedNode_SpecificDogName had been written without the FOR XML PATH clause, and for @NestedInput_SpecificDogName = 99 it returns the single rowset record:
@SpecificDogNameId DogName 99 Astro
But with the FOR XML PATH clause,
CREATE FUNCTION dbo.udfGetLowestLevelNestedNode_SpecificDogName
(
@NestedInput_SpecificDogNameId
)
RETURNS XML
AS
BEGIN
-- Declare the return variable here
DECLARE @ResultVar XML
-- Add the T-SQL statements to compute the return value here
SET @ResultVar =
(
SELECT
@SpecificDogNameId as "@SpecificDogNameId",
t.DogName
FROM tblDogs t
FOR XML PATH('Dog')
)
-- Return the result of the function
RETURN @ResultVar
END
the user-defined function produces the following XML (the @ signs causes the SpecificDogNameId field to be returned as an attribute)
<Dog SpecificDogNameId=99>Astro</Dog>
Nesting User-defined Functions of XML Type
User-defined functions such as the above udfGetLowestLevelNestedNode_SpecificDogName can be nested to provide a powerful method to produce complex XML.
For example, the function
CREATE FUNCTION [dbo].[udfGetDogCollectionNode]()
RETURNS XML
AS
BEGIN
-- Declare the return variable here
DECLARE @ResultVar XML
-- Add the T-SQL statements to compute the return value here
SET @ResultVar =
(
SELECT
[dbo].[udfGetLowestLevelNestedNode_SpecificDogName]
(t.SpecificDogNameId)
FROM tblDogs t
FOR XML PATH('DogCollection') ELEMENTS
)
-- Return the result of the function
RETURN @ResultVar
END
when invoked as
SELECT [dbo].[udfGetDogCollectionNode]()
might produce the complex XML node (given the appropriate underlying data)
<DogCollection>
<Dog SpecificDogNameId="88">Dino</Dog>
<Dog SpecificDogNameId="99">Astro</Dog>
</DogCollection>
From here, you could keep working upwards in the nested tree to build as complex an XML structure as you please
CREATE FUNCTION [dbo].[udfGetAnimalCollectionNode]()
RETURNS XML
AS
BEGIN
DECLARE @ResultVar XML
SET @ResultVar =
(
SELECT
dbo.udfGetDogCollectionNode(),
dbo.udfGetCatCollectionNode()
FOR XML PATH('AnimalCollection'), ELEMENTS XSINIL
)
RETURN @ResultVar
END
when invoked as
SELECT [dbo].[udfGetAnimalCollectionNode]()
the udf might produce the more complex XML node (given the appropriate underlying data)
<AnimalCollection>
<DogCollection>
<Dog SpecificDogNameId="88">Dino</Dog>
<Dog SpecificDogNameId="99">Astro</Dog>
</DogCollection>
<CatCollection>
<Cat SpecificCatNameId="11">Sylvester</Cat>
<Cat SpecificCatNameId="22">Tom</Cat>
<Cat SpecificCatNameId="33">Felix</Cat>
</CatCollection>
</AnimalCollection>
Can you tell a bit more about what exactly you are planning to do. Is it simply generating XML data based on a content of the table or adding some data from the table to an existing xml structure?
There are great series of articles on the subject on XML in SQLServer written by Jacob Sebastian, it starts with the basics of generating XML from the data in the table