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Getting basic values

DQL uses location path syntax to extract values from JSON structures. The following examples demonstrate several examples of getting basic values from JSON data.

Contents​

Example JSON​

The examples below use this JSON data:

{
    "name": "John Smith",
    "address": {
        "street": "123 Park Avenue",
        "city": "Atlanta",
        "state": "GA",
        "zip": "12345"
    },
    "phones": [
        {
            "type": "Home",
            "number": "123-456-7890"
        },
        {
            "type": "Cell",
            "number": "098-765-4321"
        }
    ],
    "display name": "myuser123"
}

Get a top-level field​

To access a top-level field with DQL, enter the field's name.

DQL​
 name
Result​
"John Smith"

Get a nested field​

To access fields below the top level, use field names separated by dot . delimiters.

DQL​
 address.city
Result​
"Atlanta"

Get an entire object​

Enter the name of an object in the JSON file to retrieve all the data within that object.

DQL​
 address
Result​
{
    street: '123 Park Avenue',
    city: 'Atlanta',
    state: 'GA',
    zip: '12345',
}

Select a specific index in an array​

To access individual values in an array in a JSON file, specify an index number between square brackets after the array's name.

DQL​
 phones[0].number
Result​
"123-456-7890"

Select an entire array​

Enter the name of an array in the JSON file to retrieve all the data within that array.

DQL​
 phones
Result​
[
    {
        "type": "Home",
        "number": "123-456-7890"
    },
    {
        "type": "Cell",
        "number": "098-765-4321"
    }
]

Return one field of every object in an array​

To return a specific field from multiple objects in an array, enter the array's name then the field's name, separated by a dot.

DQL​
phones.number
Result​
["123-456-7890","098-765-4321"]

Return fields that contain special characters in an array​

If a field in the JSON file contains special characters (like spaces), put the field's name in single quotes.

DQL​
'display name'
Result​
myuser123

Get the number of elements in the list​

DQL​
$count(phones)
Result​
2
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