MessagePack is an efficient binary serialization format. It lets you exchange data among multiple languages like JSON. But it's faster and smaller. Small integers are encoded into a single byte, and typical short strings require only one extra byte in addition to the strings themselves.

Byndyusoft.Net.Http.MessagePack

Provides extension methods for System.Net.Http.HttpClient and System.Net.Http.HttpContent that perform automatic serialization and deserialization using MessagePack.

This package actually depends on Microsoft.Net.Http, and extends the HttpClient with MessagePack features that you would likely need to talk to a RESTful service such as ASP.NET Web API. Package operates in the System.Net.Http namespace and adds some handy extension methods to HttpClient and HttpContent.

So for example:

using (var client = new HttpClient())
{
    var product = await client.GetFromMessagePackAsync<Product>("http://localhost/api/products/1");
}

or

using (var client = new HttpClient())
{
    var response = await _client.GetAsync("http://localhost/api/products/1");
    response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
    var product = await response.Content.ReadFromMessagePackAsync<Product>();
}

or

using (var client = new HttpClient())
{
    var request = new HttpRequestMessage(HttpMethod.Post, "http://localhost/api/products/1");
    request.Content = MessagePackContent.Create(new Product());
    var response = await _client.SendAsync(request);
    response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
}

If you tried to just use Microsoft.Net.Http, the GetFromMessagePackAsync method wouldn't be available to you, and you'd only be able to read the content as raw data such as bytes or string, and have to do the serializing / de-serializing yourself.

You also get extension methods to PUT / POST back to the service in MessagePack format without having to do that yourself:

await client.PutAsMessagePackAsync("http://localhost/api/products/1", product);
await client.PostAsMessagePackAsync("http://localhost/api/products/1", product);

This package also adds MessagePackMediaTypeFormatter class for formatting HttpClient requests and responses:

using (var client = new HttpClient())
{
	var formatter = new MessagePackMediaTypeFormatter();
	var request = new SearchProductRequest { Name = 'iphone', OrderBy = 'id' };
	var content = new ObjectContent<SearchProductRequest>(request, formatter);
	var response = await client.PostAsync("http://localhost/api/products:search", content);
	var products = await response.Content.ReadAsAsync<Product[]>(new[] {formatter});
}

Installing

dotnet add package Byndyusoft.Net.Http.MessagePack

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Contributing

To contribute, you will need to setup your local environment, see prerequisites. For the contribution and workflow guide, see package development lifecycle.

A detailed overview on how to contribute can be found in the contributing guide.

Prerequisites

Make sure you have installed all of the following prerequisites on your development machine:

• Git - Download & Install Git. OSX and Linux machines typically have this already installed.
• .NET (version 8.0 or higher) - Download & Install .NET.

General folders layout

src

• source code

tests

• unit-tests

Package development lifecycle

• Implement package logic in src
• Add or addapt unit-tests (prefer before and simultaneously with coding) in tests
• Add or change the documentation as needed
• Open pull request in the correct branch. Target the project's master branch

Maintainers

github.maintain@byndyusoft.com