encode()

The encode() function converts a string to binary using a specified character encoding and returns it as binary.

Syntax

Parameters

STR_EXPR

A string or expression to convert to binary. If an array is passed, each element is converted individually.

CHARSET

The character encoding name. Defaults to utf-8 if omitted. Use the Preferred MIME Name or Aliases registered in the IANA Charset Registry. Refer to the IANA Charset Registry for the list of registered character encodings.

Description

The encode() function converts a string to binary (byte[]) using the specified character encoding.

Returns null if the input value is null or not a string. If an array or list is passed, the conversion is applied recursively to each element.

An error is raised at query parse time if an unsupported character encoding name is specified.

Error codes

Usage examples

1. Convert a string to UTF-8 binary

   json "{'val': 'hello, world!'}" | eval bin = encode(val)
   | # bin: 68656c6c6f2c20776f726c6421
   

2. Convert with a specified character encoding

   json "{'val': 'hello'}" | eval bin = encode(val, "euc-kr")
   

3. null input

   json "{'val': null}" | eval bin = encode(val)
   | # bin: null
   

Compatibility

The encode() function has been available since before Sonar 4.0.