OutWit.Common.ProtoBuf

A .NET library that provides a set of utilities and wrapper classes to simplify serialization tasks using protobuf-net. This package offers convenient extension methods, pre-configured surrogates for common types, and serializable collection classes.

Features

• Simplified Serialization: Extension methods (ToProtoBytes, FromProtoBytes) to easily serialize objects to byte arrays and deserialize them back.
• Deep Cloning: A convenient ProtoClone extension method that uses serialization to perform a deep copy of an object.
• File I/O: Helpers to export and load collections directly to/from files (ExportAsProtoBuf, LoadAsProtoBuf).
• Built-in Surrogates: Out-of-the-box serialization support for DateTimeOffset and PropertyChangedEventArgs.
• Easy Configuration: A simple registration pattern to add your own custom surrogates or subtypes.

Installation

This library is intended to be used as a NuGet package. You can add it to your project using the .NET CLI:

dotnet add package OutWit.Common.ProtoBuf

Usage

Basic Serialization and Deserialization

The library extends any object with ToProtoBytes() and FromProtoBytes<T>() methods.

// Assuming you have a class marked with ProtoContract [ProtoContract] public class Person { [ProtoMember(1)] public string Name { get; set; } [ProtoMember(2)] public int Age { get; set; } } // --- Usage --- var originalPerson = new Person { Name = "John Doe", Age = 30 }; // Serialize the object to a byte array byte[] data = originalPerson.ToProtoBytes(); // Deserialize the byte array back to an object var deserializedPerson = data.FromProtoBytes<Person>(); Console.WriteLine($"Deserialized Person: {deserializedPerson.Name}, Age: {deserializedPerson.Age}");