PatchData Method  
 

Submits patch data to the server and returns the result in a string buffer provided by the caller.

Syntax

object.PatchData( Resource, PatchData, Buffer, [Options] )

Parameters

Resource
A string that specifies the resource that the patch data will be submitted to. Typically this is the name of an executable script.
PatchData
A string that contains the patch information. Typically this is XML or JSON formatted data which contains the information that should be used to update the specified resource.
Buffer
A string or byte array that will contain the output generated by the script. Typically this is XML or JSON content which is generated by the script as a result of processing the data that was posted to it.
Options
An optional integer value which specifies one or more options. This argument is constructed by using a bitwise operator with any of the following values:
Constant Description
httpPatchDefault The default patch mode. The contents of the buffer are not encoded and the data patch data submitted to the server as provided by the caller. The data returned by the server is copied to the result buffer exactly as it is returned from the server.
httpPatchConvert If the data being returned from the server is textual, it is automatically converted so that the end of line character sequence is compatible with the Windows platform. Individual carriage return or linefeed characters are converted to carriage return/linefeed character sequences. Note that this option does not have any effect on the form data being submitted to the server, only on the data returned by the server.

Return Value

A value of zero is returned if the operation was successful, otherwise a non-zero error code is returned which indicates the cause of the failure.

Remarks

The PatchData method is used to submit XML or JSON formatted patch data to a service, and then returns a copy of the response from the server into a local string buffer. This method will not perform any encoding and will not automatically define the type of patch data being submitted. Your application is responsible for specifying the content type for the patch data, and ensuring that the XML or JSON data that is being submitted to the server is formatted correctly.

This method sends a PATCH command to the server, which is similar to a POST or PUT request. It is used to make partial updates to a resource, rather than creating or replacing it entirely. The format of the patch data is specific to the service being used. If the resource being patched does not exist, the behavior is defined by the server. If enough information is provided, it may choose to create the resource just as if a PUT command was used, or it may return an error.

Your application should use the SetHeader method to define the Content-Type header prior to calling the PatchData method. One of the most common formats used is the JSON Merge Patch which is defined in RFC 7396. The value for the Content-Type header for this patch format is "application/merge-patch+json". Refer to your service API documentation to determine what patch formats are acceptable, along with any additional header values that must be defined.

This method will cause the current thread to block until the operation completes, a timeout occurs or the post is canceled. During the operation, the OnProgress event will fire periodically, enabling the application to update any user interface objects such as a progress bar.

See Also

GetData Method, PostData Method, PutFile Method, OnProgress Event