使用正则表达式匹配重复序列

Question

I am trying to convert a TCL keyed list to a Java HashMap and need to use regular expressions to break pieces of the text out. A sample of the text I am using is:

{ID {{NAME X } {HUB 0   } {NUM 14226188  }}} {SRCID {{NAME XY } {HUB 0   } {NUM 14226136  }}} {TYPE DATA }

Here there are three distinct groups ID, SRCID, and TYPE. I have tried using the regexp {.*?} but the first two groups get broken up. If I use just {.*} then the whole string is matched as a unit, not three. Any suggestions of what I should try next?

Answer 1

Here is sample code with regex to meet your requirement :

public class RegexTester {
public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    String data = "{ID {{NAME X } {HUB 0   } {NUM 14226188  }}} {SRCID {{NAME XY } {HUB 0   } {NUM 14226136  }}} {TYPE DATA }";

    Pattern pattern = Pattern.compile("(\\{\\bID.+\\})\\s*(\\{SRCID.+\\})\\s*(\\{TYPE DATA.+\\})");
    Matcher matcher = pattern.matcher(data);

    while (matcher.find()) {

        System.out.println(matcher.group(1)); // Group - ID
        System.out.println(matcher.group(2)); // Group - SRCID
        System.out.println(matcher.group(3)); // Group - TYPE DATA
    }
}

Output :

{ID {{NAME X } {HUB 0 } {NUM 14226188 }}}
{SRCID {{NAME XY } {HUB 0 } {NUM 14226136 }}}
{TYPE DATA }

Hope this helps.