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We are working on a project that converts/transforms XML files from one format to another. The file and output file is not only different from "elements name" prospective but there are also calculations that involve huge number of DB tables for mapping elements and lookup values. In addition, the element names are different from both sides and there are too much conditional logic operate inside.

We have a C# project that does the whole logic for us but it takes us 2-3 minutes for a single file to be converted that is why we want to use a ready-made tool instead.

My Question Is: Does BizTalk support conversion of XML to JSON and vice versa by including business logic, Lookup values (tbls), different mappings of elements, and etc? Can I also run it as a service so that it handles the process in a loop base for converting thousands of files every day?

Dijkgraaf
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M. Fawad Surosh
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Yes. BizTalk can do this. In particular, BizTalk 2013R2 has some enhanced support for JSON, and 2016 (coming out later this year) should see further improvements. BizTalk is pretty much made for this.

However, I'd caution you against doing this purely for speed. It's entirely possible that a BizTalk integration for this will take as long as or longer than your C# project (depending on what methods/patterns you used in the C# project). It's also possible it could go a lot faster. It really depends on a lot of factors (size of the file, connectivity to the database, complexity of rules/transformations).

What BizTalk will bring to bear is an easier mapping/transformation interface, a built in rules engine, adapters and pipelines for connecting to your data sources/destinations, and baked in reliability/throttling/resource allocating/multithreading.

One other thing to add - if you envision having many integration needs such as this, then BizTalk can provide a solid foundation for building an integration platform/ESB.

Dan Field
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  • Can I do mappings with different node names? Can I also launch it as a service so that it is executed on loop base? – M. Fawad Surosh Mar 03 '16 at 21:12
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    I'm not entirely sure what you're asking there - BizTalk maps are based on going from one schema to another - schemas can have different node names and optional nodes, but they shouldn't radically differ in structure/form from message to message. BizTalk itself runs as a service, and would be well suited to processing multiple files/requests/etc. – Dan Field Mar 03 '16 at 21:28