✏️ XSLT Edit XML – Modify, Filter, and Restructure XML Data

🧲 Introduction – Why Learn to Edit XML with XSLT?

XSLT isn’t just for displaying XML as HTML—it’s also a powerful tool to edit and restructure XML data. With the right templates and XPath expressions, you can modify values, remove nodes, rename tags, reorder elements, and generate completely new XML structures—all without manually touching the original file.

🎯 In this guide, you’ll learn:

• How to use XSLT to edit, filter, and transform XML structures
• Techniques to rename, reorder, or remove nodes
• Use cases for modifying XML schema or content layout
• Real-world examples of XML-to-XML editing

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🔁 What Can You Edit with XSLT?

Task	Example
Rename tags	<fname> → <first-name>
Filter out nodes	Remove <price> where value < 500
Change values	Convert currency, replace text
Reorder elements	Move <author> before <title>
Add new structure	Wrap <book> in <product>
Convert to new XML schema	Transform <order> into <invoice>

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📄 Sample Input XML

<books>
  <book id="101">
    <title>Learn XSLT</title>
    <author>Jane Doe</author>
    <price>399</price>
  </book>
  <book id="102">
    <title>Advanced XML</title>
    <author>John Smith</author>
    <price>699</price>
  </book>
</books>

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✅ Example – Rename Elements and Reorder Structure

🔹 XSLT Stylesheet

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0"
  xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform">

  <xsl:output method="xml" indent="yes"/>

  <!-- Template for root -->
  <xsl:template match="/books">
    <library>
      <xsl:apply-templates select="book"/>
    </library>
  </xsl:template>

  <!-- Template for each book -->
  <xsl:template match="book">
    <item code="{@id}">
      <creator><xsl:value-of select="author"/></creator>
      <name><xsl:value-of select="title"/></name>
      <cost><xsl:value-of select="price"/></cost>
    </item>
  </xsl:template>

</xsl:stylesheet>

✅ Output:

<library>
  <item code="101">
    <creator>Jane Doe</creator>
    <name>Learn XSLT</name>
    <cost>399</cost>
  </item>
  <item code="102">
    <creator>John Smith</creator>
    <name>Advanced XML</name>
    <cost>699</cost>
  </item>
</library>

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❌ Example – Remove Nodes Based on Condition

<xsl:template match="book[price &lt; 500]"/>

✅ Removes all <book> elements where <price> is less than 500.

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🔄 Example – Replace or Update Values

<price>
  <xsl:value-of select="price * 1.1"/>
</price>

✅ Adds 10% tax or markup during transformation.

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📐 Example – Convert One Schema to Another

Transform:

<book>
  <title>...</title>
  <author>...</author>
</book>

Into:

<product>
  <info>
    <name>...</name>
    <writer>...</writer>
  </info>
</product>

✅ Use nested templates to restructure the XML hierarchy.

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✅ Best Practices for Editing XML with XSLT

• ✔️ Use <xsl:template match="..."> to rename or transform nodes
• ✔️ Use conditions ([price > 500]) to filter output
• ✔️ Use {@attr} inside attributes to preserve metadata
• ✔️ Use <xsl:copy> and <xsl:copy-of> for partial retention
• ❌ Don’t edit the original XML file—transform into a new XML output

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📌 Summary – Recap & Next Steps

Editing XML with XSLT gives you a declarative and powerful way to restructure and refine your XML documents. You can change structure, format, and content—perfect for data cleaning, export pipelines, or schema conversions.

🔍 Key Takeaways:

• Use XSLT to rename, filter, modify, and restructure XML
• Output clean XML with <xsl:output method="xml"/>
• Reorganize content using nested templates and XPath

⚙️ Real-world relevance: Used in data migration, XML schema updates, integration tools, and publishing workflows.

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❓ FAQs – XSLT Edit XML

❓ Can XSLT modify the original XML file?
❌ No. It generates a new transformed output—it doesn’t overwrite the original file.

❓ How do I remove a node in XSLT?
✅ Don’t define a template for it, or use an empty <xsl:template match="node-to-remove"/>.

❓ Can I rename an element using XSLT?
✅ Yes. Use a new tag in your template to output the new name.

❓ Can I reorder child elements?
✅ Yes. Control the output order inside your template manually.

❓ Can I apply conditions during transformation?
✅ Yes. Use [XPath conditions], <xsl:if>, and <xsl:choose>.

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