Import-Item now working on other directory files

Question

I have exported items using Export-Item command to a specific path in Data folder say, "websitepath/data/batch/userGivenName", please refer my previous question How to copy selected items to a Data folder using powershell script? now I have to read the items from this folder. The items under folder are in .item extension. I am able to get items using $items = Get-ChildItem -Path "websitepath\Data\batch\sample", but the items are not deserialized.

I tried using, Import-Item but its returning empty list, how do I deserialize/convert them?

$items = Get-ChildItem -Path "websitepath\Data\buckets\sample"
$list=@();
$items|Foreach{
    $itemPath="websitepath\Data\buckets\sample\"+$_.BaseName
    $list+= Import-Item -Path $itemPath -Root "websitepath\Data\buckets\"
   Write-Host($list)
}
if($list.Count -eq 0) {
    
    Show-Alert "There are no items currently added to the batch."
    
} 
else {
 $list | Show-ListView 
   
}
Close-Window

I referred following file for Import-Item, https://doc.sitecorepowershell.com/appendix/packaging/import-item-1

Any guidance would be helpful.

Answer 1

It looking like you're trying to import and deserialize items from files using the Import-Item cmdlet in PowerShell. However, Import-Item isn’t a standard PowerShell cmdlet, so it might be part of a custom module or script you're using.

Since Import-Item isn't a default cmdlet, let's address a more common approach for deserialization based on typical serialization formats such as XML or JSON. Here’s how you might handle it:

If the items are in a custom binary or other format, you will need the specific deserialization method used for that format. For custom formats, you might need to use a .NET class or library that matches the serialization format.

Here’s a hypothetical example if you have a custom deserialization method:

# Example of custom deserialization
Add-Type -AssemblyName "YourAssemblyContainingCustomType"

$path = "websitepath\Data\buckets\sample"
$list = @()

Get-ChildItem -Path $path -Filter *.item | ForEach-Object {
    $itemPath = $_.FullName
    $itemBytes = [System.IO.File]::ReadAllBytes($itemPath)
    $deserializedItem = [YourCustomType]::Deserialize($itemBytes)
    $list += $deserializedItem
}

if ($list.Count -eq 0) {
    Show-Alert "There are no items currently added to the batch."
} else {
    $list | Show-ListView
}
Close-Window

Replace YourCustomType with the actual type used for deserialization.

Answer 2

To test the same scenario, I did the following on my local.

• I created two items in the content tree like this.

• I exported the items using the Export-Item. And it looks like this

• I deleted the items in the content tree and then I run this command to import the items using Import-Item in PowerShell like this.

  Import-Item -path "C:\inetpub\wwwroot\Sitecore10.1sc.dev.local\App_Data\serialization\master\sitecore\content\Home" -root "C:\inetpub\wwwroot\Sitecore10.1sc.dev.local\App_Data\serialization\" -recurse

And then it created those items in the content tree.

I think, if you want to import the items, In place of using a loop, you can use recursive and you need to provide the folder path from where you need to import the items. For example, I am exporting items inside the Home folder.

Hope this helps.