Extra characters in list of required fields returned from GetDwsMetaData

Question

Hello,

I've set up a site with additional columns that have non-standard characters in their names; these columns are configured to be required fields.  Through my standalone app, I can get the names of the fields using the GetDwsMetaData call to dws.asmx, where I realized I need to unencode those characters, e.g., convert _x0020_ to a space.  I then call GetList from lists.asmx to obtain metaInfo that indicates whether all required fields have been filled in or not.  This generally works well, but for some reason, if the column name contains a colon (i.e., ":"), the metaInfo always contains the colon preceded by a backslash (i.e., "\:").

For example, if I name a column "One : Two", GetDwsMetaData returns the name as "One_x0020__x003a__x0020_Two", which I unencode to the proper name.  After I call GetList, though, the returned data contains the following string: "One \: Two".  If I name the column with a dash, say, or other special character, there is no extra backslash. 

Anyone know offhand if this is the only character, or perhaps shed some light on why this is happening.  I can work around it, but would like some further background on this.

Note that I've also seen this with SharePoint 2010 sites.  (Should I post there, too?)

Cheers!

Rick Mutzke

Answer 1

Hi,

Thank you for your question.

I am trying to involve someone familiar with this topic to further look at this issue. There might be some time delay. Appreciate your patience.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

Regards,

Xue-Mei Change

TechNet Subscriber Support in forum

If you have any feedback on our support, please [e-mail].

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Xue-mei Chang

TechNet Community Support

Answer 2

maybe you running into http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;905231

Answer 3

Thanks, but that's not the issue.  My problem relates to column names, which can have some of the characters listed in the link you provided.

Rick M.

Answer 4

I think you have a workaround in place which might the fastest option here. If you want us to investigate the issue further we would ask you to open a paid support case that may better meet your needs.
 
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