Sorting XML using Powershell

Question

So I have some XML that I'm creating a collection on and then trying to Sort it based on an Element but it's not working.

My Code

$xml = [xml](Get-Content $args)

function readServersfromXML ( ) {

    $xml.Settings.Server | select -ExpandProperty Name
}

function readServerServicesfromXML ( $server ) {
    $xml.Settings.Server | Where-Object {$_.Name -eq $server} | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Services
}

function getServerServiceStatus ( $servers ) {

    foreach ( $server in $servers ) {
        $services = ( readServerServicesfromXML $server )
        foreach ( $service in $services.ChildNodes ) {
      $service | Sort-Object StartOrder
        }
    }
}

$servers = readServersfromXML
getServerServiceStatus ( $servers )

XML

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<Settings>
  <Server>
    <Name>Server1</Name>
    <StartOrder>1</StartOrder>
    <Services>
      <Service>
        <Name>Service1</Name>
        <StartOrder>1</StartOrder>
      </Service>
      <Service>
       <Name>Service2</Name>
       <StartOrder>2</StartOrder>
      </Service>
      <Service>
        <Name>Service4</Name>
        <StartOrder>4</StartOrder>
      </Service>
      <Service>
       <Name>Service3</Name>
       <StartOrder>3</StartOrder>
      </Service>
    </Services>
  </Server>
</Settings>

I would expect the output to be like this

Name                                                        StartOrder
----                                                        ----------
Service1                                                    1
Service2                                                    2
Service3                                                    3
Service4                                                    4

The Output I keep getting is this:

Name                                                        StartOrder
----                                                        ----------
Service1                                                    1
Service2                                                    2
Service4                                                    4
Service3                                                    3

anyone have an idea? I've tried casting the StartOrder to an [int] but that doesn't work either. Any help is appriciated.

You're sorting each row individually. Have you tried sorting $services.ChildNodes instead? — Benjamin Hubbard
– Benjamin Hubbard, Commented Nov 3, 2015 at 22:43

Volkan Paksoy · Accepted Answer · 2015-11-03 22:53:02Z

1

This modified version of the function sorted by StartOrder in ascending order for me:

function getServerServiceStatus ( $servers ) 
{
    foreach ( $server in $servers ) 
    {
        $services = ( readServerServicesfromXML $server )
        $services.ChildNodes | Sort-Object { [int] $_.StartOrder}
    }
}

The output is:

Name                                                        StartOrder
----                                                        ----------
Service1                                                    1
Service2                                                    2
Service3                                                    3
Service4                                                    4

answered Nov 3, 2015 at 22:53

Volkan Paksoy

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2 Comments

todd1215 Over a year ago

Volkan you rock! Thanks for the assistance. That is exactly what I needed. The online help doc doesn't really help a newbie that much. Can you suggest any online resources for learning the ins and outs of PowerShell.

Volkan Paksoy Over a year ago

Thanks for the kind words, Todd. In terms of resources I generally like Pluralsight courses as they cover various aspects.

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