Fix Serialization/Deserialization issue with $ prefix columns #3051
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) ### Why make this change? Serialization and deserialization of metadata currently fail when column names are prefixed with the $ symbol. ### Root cause This issue occurs because we’ve enabled the ReferenceHandler flag in our System.Text.Json serialization settings. When this flag is active, the serializer treats $ as a reserved character used for special metadata (e.g., $id, $ref). As a result, any property name starting with $ is interpreted as metadata and cannot be deserialized properly. ### What is this change? This update introduces custom logic in the converter’s Write and Read methods to handle $-prefixed column names safely. - During serialization, columns beginning with $ are escaped as "_$". - During deserialization, this transformation is reversed to restore the original property names. ### How was this tested - [x] Unit tests --------- Co-authored-by: Aniruddh Munde <anmunde@microsoft.com>
## Why make this change? - To apply correct serialization and deserialization logic for stored procedures. With the previous changes, serialization was not working correctly for the StoredProcedureDefinition type, which extends SourceDefinition. When the value type was passed explicitly for serialization, the parent type was used instead, causing some child-type properties to be omitted. ## What is this change? Instead of manually specifying the value type during serialization, this change allows the library to infer the type automatically and perform the correct serialization. ## How was this tested? - [x] Unit Tests --------- Co-authored-by: Aniruddh Munde <anmunde@microsoft.com>
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Pull request overview
This pull request addresses a serialization/deserialization issue with column names that start with a dollar sign ($). The fix introduces an escaping mechanism that transforms dollar-prefixed column names during serialization and restores them during deserialization.
Changes:
- Added escaping/unescaping logic in DatabaseObjectConverter to handle dollar-prefixed column names
- Added three comprehensive unit tests to validate serialization/deserialization with dollar-prefixed columns
- Modified InitializeObjects test helper to support generating test data with dollar-prefixed column names
Reviewed changes
Copilot reviewed 2 out of 2 changed files in this pull request and generated 14 comments.
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs | Implements escaping/unescaping mechanism for dollar-prefixed column names in serialization/deserialization |
| src/Service.Tests/UnitTests/SerializationDeserializationTests.cs | Adds tests for dollar-prefixed columns and updates test helper to support this scenario |
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src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs
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src/Service.Tests/UnitTests/SerializationDeserializationTests.cs
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src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs
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src/Service.Tests/UnitTests/SerializationDeserializationTests.cs
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src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs
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src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs
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src/Core/Services/MetadataProviders/Converters/DatabaseObjectConverter.cs
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Aniruddh25
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Jan 13, 2026
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@Alekhya-Polavarapu I've opened a new pull request, #3055, to work on those changes. Once the pull request is ready, I'll request review from you. |
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@Alekhya-Polavarapu I've opened a new pull request, #3056, to work on those changes. Once the pull request is ready, I'll request review from you. |
…onverter.cs Co-authored-by: Copilot <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
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@copilot implement fixes for typos in documentation you listed |
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@Alekhya-Polavarapu I've opened a new pull request, #3057, to work on those changes. Once the pull request is ready, I'll request review from you. |
## Why make this change? Code review identified typos in XML documentation comments that inaccurately described the escaping mechanism and contained spelling errors. ## What is this change? Fixed documentation comments to accurately reflect the implementation: - **DatabaseObjectConverter.cs**: Updated escape/unescape method summaries to correctly describe the `DAB_ESCAPE$` prefix transformation (previously incorrectly documented as `_$`) - **SerializationDeserializationTests.cs**: Corrected "deserilization" → "deserialization" in three test method comments ## How was this tested? - [x] Documentation-only change, no functional changes <!-- START COPILOT CODING AGENT TIPS --> --- 💬 We'd love your input! Share your thoughts on Copilot coding agent in our [2 minute survey](https://gh.io/copilot-coding-agent-survey). --------- Co-authored-by: copilot-swe-agent[bot] <198982749+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: Alekhya-Polavarapu <67075378+Alekhya-Polavarapu@users.noreply.github.com>
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Why make this change?
Serialization and deserialization of metadata currently fail when column names are prefixed with the $ symbol.
What is this change?
This pull request enhances the serialization and deserialization logic for database metadata objects to properly handle column names that start with a dollar sign ($). It introduces a mechanism to escape such column names during serialization and unescape them during deserialization, ensuring compatibility and correctness when processing metadata with special column names.
How was this tested?