Data Link — JSON

TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON loads JSON data into a TTMSFNCDataSet, enabling standard dataset operations (browse, filter, sort, bind) on JSON files.

Key class: TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON

Loading a JSON File

Drop TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON on the form and either:

Set the FileName property at design time — the file loads automatically.
Call LoadFromFile or LoadFromStream at runtime.

TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON1.FileName := 'data.json';
// or
TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON1.LoadFromFile('data.json', TEncoding.UTF8);

Link to a TTMSFNCDataSet:

TMSFNCDataSet1.DataLink := TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON1;
TMSFNCDataSet1.Active := True;

JSON Structure

Simple Array (no DataRootElement)

When DataRootElement is empty, the JSON must be a flat array where each item has an identical structure:

[
  { "name": "John", "email": "john@example.com" },
  { "name": "Mark", "email": "mark@example.com" }
]

Structured JSON with Metadata

When MetaDataElement is set, the component reads field definitions from that element. Each field entry must have an "id" (JSON property name) and a "name" (display name in the dataset):

{
  "columns": [
    { "id": "name", "name": "Name" },
    { "id": "email", "name": "Email" },
    { "id": "phoneNumber", "name": "Phone Number" }
  ],
  "data": [
    { "name": "John", "email": "john@example.com", "phoneNumber": "(353) 01 222 3333" },
    { "name": "Mark", "email": "mark@gmail.com",   "phoneNumber": "(01) 22 888 4444" }
  ]
}

Set DataRootElement := 'data' and MetaDataElement := 'columns'.

Date and Time Format

By default, ISO 8601 (yyyy-mm-ddThh:nn:ss.zzzZ) is used to detect and convert date values. Set DateTimeFormat to override with a custom format:

TTMSFNCDataLinkJSON1.DateTimeFormat := 'yyyy/mm/dd';

Automatic Saving

Set AutoSaveChanges := True to persist modifications back to the file as they occur.

Methods

Method	Description
`LoadFromFile(AFileName, AEncoding)`	Load from a file
`LoadFromStream(AStream, AEncoding)`	Load from a stream
`SaveToFile(AFileName, AEncoding)`	Save to a file
`SaveToStream(AStream, AEncoding)`	Save to a stream

Properties

Property	Description
`AutoSaveChanges`	Auto-persist changes (default: `False`)
`DataRootElement`	JSON key whose value is the data array
`DateTimeFormat`	Custom date/time format string (default: ISO 8601)
`FileEncoding`	Encoding for file operations
`FileName`	JSON file path
`MetaDataElement`	JSON key containing field definitions

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