In the last post, we try to demystify the reason and cause of the error: Invalid type name. The root node type has to be a valid C# identifier when you are working with a schema with a single root node.
In this second part of the post, we will address what happens If we are working with a schema with multiple root nodes, and two or more root nodes contains hyphens (-) or any other punctuation characters?
Let’s take the following example, where we have:
- The root node “My-NAME-SANDRO” with the “RootNode TypeName” property set as “My-NAME-SANDRO”
- And the root node “Let-SEE-What-happens” with the “RootNode TypeName” property set as “Let-SEE-What-happens”
If we try to build our BizTalk Server solution within Visual Studio it will fail with the following errors:
| Severity | Code | Description | Project | File | Line | Suppression State |
| Error | Node “My-NAME-SANDRO” – Specify a valid .NET type name for this root node. The current .NET type name of this root node is invalid (it is a reserved BizTalk Keyword or is an invalid C# identifier). | c:\users\…\documents\visual studio 2015\Projects\BizTalk Server Project1\BizTalk Server Project1\Schema2.xsd | 1 | |||
| Error | Node “Let-SEE-What-happens” – Specify a valid .NET type name for this root node. The current .NET type name of this root node is invalid (it is a reserved BizTalk Keyword or is an invalid C# identifier). | c:\users\…\documents\visual studio 2015\Projects\BizTalk Server Project1\BizTalk Server Project1\Schema2.xsd | 1 |
Cause
Official Microsoft documentation state that The Type Name property of this schema file is not valid. Because the value of the Type Name property is used as the name of an automatically generated C# class name, it must be a valid C# identifier and cannot be a reserved BizTalk keyword.
And in this case – when working with multiple root nodes in a single schema – it is not allowed the use of hyphens or other punctuations like “.”, “!” and so on, with the exception of the underscore (_).
We saw in the previous post that we could work around this “limitation” in schemas with a single root node by open the Schema with XML (Text) Editor and fix the “rootTypeName” for the value you want. In this case, it will not work.
Solution
As hyphens, or any other punctuation characters, are not allowed, the only solution you have is to change it from the “RootNode TypeName” property. For example:
- For the node “My-NANE-SANDRO” the “RootNode TypeName” value can be “MyNAMESANDRO” or “My_NAME_SANDRO” instead of “My-NAME-SANDRO”
- And for the node “Let-SEE-What-happens” the “RootNode TypeName” value can be “LetSEEWhathappens” or “Let_SEE_What_happens” instead of “My-NAME-SANDRO
By removing all hyphens, or any other punctuation characters, from this property in all schemas you will guarantee that you will not face this issue again at least in this project.
Conclusion
As a best practice you should use hyphens, or any other punctuation characters in the “RootNode TypeName”, nevertheless:
- The use of hyphens or any other punctuation characters is allowed in schemas with a single root node;
- The use of hyphens or any other punctuation characters is not allowed in schemas with multiple single root node;
And by the way, can my root node name still contain hyphens or any other punctuation characters?
Yes, it can. In all scenarios as long the root “RootNode TypeName” property doesn’t contain any of them as you will see in the picture below:
