NTDLS.Persistence

What it is. A small set of helpers for reading and writing serialized objects to and from disk. The headline use case is application configuration: save a plain C# object once, load it back next run, with no JSON/XML mapping or file-path bookkeeping.

When to reach for it. You want per-machine settings (last window size, chosen options, cached credentials) persisted with as little code as possible. Skip it if you need portable, human-editable config that travels between machines or versions - a JSON file you control gives you more flexibility.

Getting started

Define any serializable class, then save and load it by program name:

class UIPreferences
{
    public string Username { get; set; } = string.Empty;
    public bool RememberPassword { get; set; }
}

static void Main()
{
    // Saving preferences:
    var preferences = new UIPreferences
    {
        Username = "JPatterson",
        RememberPassword = false
    };

    // The file is named after the class type plus the program name,
    // and stored in the common programs data directory.
    CommonApplicationData.SaveToDisk("MyProgramName", preferences);

    // Loading them back later:
    var loadedPreferences = CommonApplicationData.LoadFromDisk<UIPreferences>("MyProgramName");

    Console.WriteLine($"Welcome back, {loadedPreferences.Username}!");
}

The generic argument on LoadFromDisk tells the helper which shape to reconstruct, so each setting class round-trips independently under the same program name.

NuGet: NTDLS.Persistence