> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/boxlang-language/reference/types/string.md).

# string

## String Methods

<details>

<summary><code>toAST(filepath=[string], returnType=[string], sourceType=[string])</code></summary>

Generates the Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) for BoxLang source code or a file.

The AST represents the syntactic structure of the code and can be used for code analysis, transformation, or generation.

,

, ,**,Usage Examples:,**, ,

,

,

```
,
// Parse source code and return as struct (default)
ast = boxAST( source = "x = 1 + 2" );
println( ast.ASTType ); // Outputs: BoxAssignment
// Parse source code and return as JSON
json = boxAST( source = "function add(a, b) { return a + b; }", returnType = "json" );
println( json ); // Outputs: JSON representation of the AST
// Parse source code and return as text
text = boxAST( source = "if (x > 5) { println('yes'); }", returnType = "text" );
println( text ); // Outputs: Human-readable text representation
// Parse a file
ast = boxAST( filepath = "src/MyClass.bx" );
// Use as a member function on a string
source = "a = [1, 2, 3]";
ast = source.toAST(); // Returns AST as struct
ast = source.toAST( returnType = "json" ); // Returns AST as JSON string
// Parse CFML/ColdFusion syntax
ast = boxAST( source = "cfset x = 1", sourceType = "cfscript" );
// Parse template syntax
ast = boxAST( source = ",<,bx:output>#now()#,<,/bx:output>", sourceType = "template" );
,
```

,

,

, The returned AST structure contains nodes with the following key properties: ,

, ,

* , ,
* ,**,ASTType,**, - The type of AST node (e.g., BoxAssignment, BoxFunctionDeclaration, BoxClass),
* , ,
* ,**,ASTPackage,**, - The package name of the AST node class,
* , ,
* ,Additional properties specific to each node type (e.g., name, value, children, etc.),
* , ,

Arguments:

| Argument     | Type     | Required | Default  |
| ------------ | -------- | -------- | -------- |
| `filepath`   | `string` | `false`  | `null`   |
| `returnType` | `string` | `false`  | `struct` |
| `sourceType` | `string` | `false`  | `script` |

</details>

<details>

<summary><code>jSONDeserialize(strictMapping=[boolean], useCustomSerializer=[string])</code></summary>

Converts a JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) string data representation into data, such as a structure or array.

Arguments:

| Argument              | Type      | Required | Default |
| --------------------- | --------- | -------- | ------- |
| `strictMapping`       | `boolean` | `false`  | `true`  |
| `useCustomSerializer` | `string`  | `false`  | `null`  |

</details>

<details>

<summary><code>fromJSON(strictMapping=[boolean], useCustomSerializer=[string])</code></summary>

Converts a JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) string data representation into data, such as a structure or array.

Arguments:

| Argument              | Type      | Required | Default |
| --------------------- | --------- | -------- | ------- |
| `strictMapping`       | `boolean` | `false`  | `true`  |
| `useCustomSerializer` | `string`  | `false`  | `null`  |

</details>

## Examples


---

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