Source code
Description: source: package: org.apache.commons.configuration2, class: INIConfiguration

    001/*
    002 * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one or more
    003 * contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
    004 * this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
    005 * The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
    006 * (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
    007 * the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
    008 *
    009 *     https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
    010 *
    011 * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
    012 * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
    013 * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
    014 * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
    015 * limitations under the License.
    016 */
    017package org.apache.commons.configuration2;
    018
    019import java.io.BufferedReader;
    020import java.io.IOException;
    021import java.io.PrintWriter;
    022import java.io.Reader;
    023import java.io.Writer;
    024import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
    025import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
    026import java.util.List;
    027import java.util.Map;
    028import java.util.Set;
    029import java.util.stream.Collectors;
    030
    031import org.apache.commons.configuration2.convert.ListDelimiterHandler;
    032import org.apache.commons.configuration2.ex.ConfigurationException;
    033import org.apache.commons.configuration2.ex.ConfigurationRuntimeException;
    034import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.ImmutableNode;
    035import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.InMemoryNodeModel;
    036import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.InMemoryNodeModelSupport;
    037import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.NodeHandler;
    038import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.NodeHandlerDecorator;
    039import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.NodeSelector;
    040import org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.TrackedNodeModel;
    041
    042/**
    043 * <p>
    044 * A specialized hierarchical configuration implementation for parsing ini files.
    045 * </p>
    046 * <p>
    047 * An initialization or ini file is a configuration file typically found on Microsoft's Windows operating system and
    048 * contains data for Windows based applications.
    049 * </p>
    050 * <p>
    051 * Although popularized by Windows, ini files can be used on any system or platform due to the fact that they are merely
    052 * text files that can easily be parsed and modified by both humans and computers.
    053 * </p>
    054 * <p>
    055 * A typical ini file could look something like:
    056 * </p>
    057 *
    058 * <pre>
    059 * [section1]
    060 * ; this is a comment!
    061 * var1 = foo
    062 * var2 = bar
    063 *
    064 * [section2]
    065 * var1 = doo
    066 * </pre>
    067 * <p>
    068 * The format of ini files is fairly straight forward and is composed of three components:
    069 * </p>
    070 * <ul>
    071 * <li><strong>Sections:</strong> Ini files are split into sections, each section starting with a section declaration. A section
    072 * declaration starts with a '[' and ends with a ']'. Sections occur on one line only.</li>
    073 * <li><strong>Parameters:</strong> Items in a section are known as parameters. Parameters have a typical {@code key = value}
    074 * format.</li>
    075 * <li><strong>Comments:</strong> Lines starting with a ';' are assumed to be comments.</li>
    076 * </ul>
    077 * <p>
    078 * There are various implementations of the ini file format by various vendors which has caused a number of differences
    079 * to appear. As far as possible this configuration tries to be lenient and support most of the differences.
    080 * </p>
    081 * <p>
    082 * Some of the differences supported are as follows:
    083 * </p>
    084 * <ul>
    085 * <li><strong>Comments:</strong> The '#' character is also accepted as a comment signifier.</li>
    086 * <li><strong>Key value separator:</strong> The ':' character is also accepted in place of '=' to separate keys and values in
    087 * parameters, for example {@code var1 : foo}.</li>
    088 * <li><strong>Duplicate sections:</strong> Typically duplicate sections are not allowed, this configuration does however support
    089 * this feature. In the event of a duplicate section, the two section's values are merged so that there is only a single
    090 * section. <strong>Note</strong>: This also affects the internal data of the configuration. If it is saved, only a
    091 * single section is written!</li>
    092 * <li><strong>Duplicate parameters:</strong> Typically duplicate parameters are only allowed if they are in two different
    093 * sections, thus they are local to sections; this configuration simply merges duplicates; if a section has a duplicate
    094 * parameter the values are then added to the key as a list.</li>
    095 * </ul>
    096 * <p>
    097 * Global parameters are also allowed; any parameters declared before a section is declared are added to a global
    098 * section. It is important to note that this global section does not have a name.
    099 * </p>
    100 * <p>
    101 * In all instances, a parameter's key is prepended with its section name and a '.' (period). Thus a parameter named
    102 * "var1" in "section1" will have the key {@code section1.var1} in this configuration. (This is the default behavior.
    103 * Because this is a hierarchical configuration you can change this by setting a different
    104 * {@link org.apache.commons.configuration2.tree.ExpressionEngine}.)
    105 * </p>
    106 * <p>
    107 * <strong>Implementation Details:</strong> Consider the following ini file:
    108 * </p>
    109 * <pre>
    110 *  default = ok
    111 *
    112 *  [section1]
    113 *  var1 = foo
    114 *  var2 = doodle
    115 *
    116 *  [section2]
    117 *  ; a comment
    118 *  var1 = baz
    119 *  var2 = shoodle
    120 *  bad =
    121 *  = worse
    122 *
    123 *  [section3]
    124 *  # another comment
    125 *  var1 : foo
    126 *  var2 : bar
    127 *  var5 : test1
    128 *
    129 *  [section3]
    130 *  var3 = foo
    131 *  var4 = bar
    132 *  var5 = test2
    133 *
    134 *  [sectionSeparators]
    135 *  passwd : abc=def
    136 *  a:b = "value"
    137 *
    138 *  []
    139 *  var = emptySection
    140 * </pre>
    141 * <p>
    142 * This ini file will be parsed without error. Note:
    143 * </p>
    144 * <ul>
    145 * <li>The parameter named "default" is added to the global section, it's value is accessed simply using
    146 * {@code getProperty("default")}.</li>
    147 * <li>Section 1's parameters can be accessed using {@code getProperty("section1.var1")}.</li>
    148 * <li>The parameter named "bad" simply adds the parameter with an empty value.</li>
    149 * <li>The empty key with value "= worse" is added using a key consisting of a single space character. This key is still
    150 * added to section 2 and the value can be accessed using {@code getProperty("section2. ")}, notice the period '.' and
    151 * the space following the section name.</li>
    152 * <li>Section three uses both '=' and ':' to separate keys and values.</li>
    153 * <li>Section 3 has a duplicate key named "var5". The value for this key is [test1, test2], and is represented as a
    154 * List.</li>
    155 * <li>The section called <em>sectionSeparators</em> demonstrates how the configuration deals with multiple occurrences
    156 * of separator characters. Per default the first separator character in a line is detected and used to split the key
    157 * from the value. Therefore the first property definition in this section has the key {@code passwd} and the value
    158 * {@code abc=def}. This default behavior can be changed by using quotes. If there is a separator character before the
    159 * first quote character (ignoring whitespace), this character is used as separator. Thus the second property definition
    160 * in the section has the key {@code a:b} and the value {@code value}.</li>
    161 * <li>The empty section is added using a key consisting of a single space character. The parameters can be accessed
    162 * using {@code getProperty(" .var")}</li>
    163 * </ul>
    164 * <p>
    165 * Internally, this configuration maps the content of the represented ini file to its node structure in the following
    166 * way:
    167 * </p>
    168 * <ul>
    169 * <li>Sections are represented by direct child nodes of the root node.</li>
    170 * <li>For the content of a section, corresponding nodes are created as children of the section node.</li>
    171 * </ul>
    172 * <p>
    173 * This explains how the keys for the properties can be constructed. You can also use other methods of
    174 * {@link HierarchicalConfiguration} for querying or manipulating the hierarchy of configuration nodes, for instance the
    175 * {@code configurationAt()} method for obtaining the data of a specific section. However, be careful that the storage
    176 * scheme described above is not violated (for example by adding multiple levels of nodes or inserting duplicate section
    177 * nodes). Otherwise, the special methods for ini configurations may not work correctly!
    178 * </p>
    179 * <p>
    180 * The set of sections in this configuration can be retrieved using the {@code getSections()} method. For obtaining a
    181 * {@code SubnodeConfiguration} with the content of a specific section the {@code getSection()} method can be used.
    182 * </p>
    183 * <p>
    184 * Like other {@code Configuration} implementations, this class uses a {@code Synchronizer} object to control concurrent
    185 * access. By choosing a suitable implementation of the {@code Synchronizer} interface, an instance can be made
    186 * thread-safe or not. Note that access to most of the properties typically set through a builder is not protected by
    187 * the {@code Synchronizer}. The intended usage is that these properties are set once at construction time through the
    188 * builder and after that remain constant. If you wish to change such properties during life time of an instance, you
    189 * have to use the {@code lock()} and {@code unlock()} methods manually to ensure that other threads see your changes.
    190 * </p>
    191 * <p>
    192 * As this class extends {@link AbstractConfiguration}, all basic features like variable interpolation, list handling,
    193 * or data type conversions are available as well. This is described in the chapter
    194 * <a href="https://commons.apache.org/proper/commons-configuration/userguide/howto_basicfeatures.html"> Basic features
    195 * and AbstractConfiguration</a> of the user's guide.
    196 * </p>
    197 * <p>
    198 * Note that this configuration does not support properties with null values. Such properties are considered to be
    199 * section nodes.
    200 * </p>
    201 *
    202 * @since 1.6
    203 */
    204public class INIConfiguration extends BaseHierarchicalConfiguration implements FileBasedConfiguration {
    205
    206    /**
    207     * Builds instances of INIConfiguration.
    208     *
    209     * @since 2.9.0
    210     */
    211    public static class Builder {
    212
    213        /**
    214         * Whether in-line comments on the section line are allowed.
    215         */
    216        private boolean sectionInLineCommentsAllowed;
    217
    218        /**
    219         * Constructs a new instance.
    220         */
    221        public Builder() {
    222            // empty
    223        }
    224
    225        /**
    226         * Builds a new INIConfiguration.
    227         *
    228         * @return a new INIConfiguration.
    229         */
    230        public INIConfiguration build() {
    231            return new INIConfiguration(sectionInLineCommentsAllowed);
    232        }
    233
    234        /**
    235         * Sets whether in-line comments on the section line are allowed.
    236         *
    237         * @param sectionInLineCommentsAllowed Whether in-line comments on the section line are allowed.
    238         * @return {@code this} instance.
    239         */
    240        public Builder setSectionInLineCommentsAllowed(final boolean sectionInLineCommentsAllowed) {
    241            this.sectionInLineCommentsAllowed = sectionInLineCommentsAllowed;
    242            return this;
    243        }
    244
    245    }
    246
    247    /**
    248     * A specialized node model implementation for the sub configuration representing the global section of the INI file.
    249     * This is a regular {@code TrackedNodeModel} with one exception: The {@code NodeHandler} used by this model applies a
    250     * filter on the children of the root node so that only nodes are visible that are no sub sections.
    251     */
    252    private static final class GlobalSectionNodeModel extends TrackedNodeModel {
    253
    254        /**
    255         * Creates a new instance of {@code GlobalSectionNodeModel} and initializes it with the given underlying model.
    256         *
    257         * @param modelSupport the underlying {@code InMemoryNodeModel}
    258         * @param selector the {@code NodeSelector}
    259         */
    260        public GlobalSectionNodeModel(final InMemoryNodeModelSupport modelSupport, final NodeSelector selector) {
    261            super(modelSupport, selector, true);
    262        }
    263
    264        @Override
    265        public NodeHandler<ImmutableNode> getNodeHandler() {
    266            return new NodeHandlerDecorator<ImmutableNode>() {
    267
    268                /**
    269                 * Filters the child nodes of the global section. This method checks whether the passed in node is the root node of the
    270                 * configuration. If so, from the list of children all nodes are filtered which are section nodes.
    271                 *
    272                 * @param node the node in question
    273                 * @param children the children of this node
    274                 * @return a list with the filtered children
    275                 */
    276                private List<ImmutableNode> filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(final ImmutableNode node, final List<ImmutableNode> children) {
    277                    final List<ImmutableNode> filteredList;
    278                    if (node == getRootNode()) {
    279                        filteredList = children.stream().filter(child -> !isSectionNode(child)).collect(Collectors.toList());
    280                    } else {
    281                        filteredList = children;
    282                    }
    283
    284                    return filteredList;
    285                }
    286
    287                @Override
    288                public ImmutableNode getChild(final ImmutableNode node, final int index) {
    289                    final List<ImmutableNode> children = super.getChildren(node);
    290                    return filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(node, children).get(index);
    291                }
    292
    293                @Override
    294                public List<ImmutableNode> getChildren(final ImmutableNode node) {
    295                    final List<ImmutableNode> children = super.getChildren(node);
    296                    return filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(node, children);
    297                }
    298
    299                @Override
    300                public List<ImmutableNode> getChildren(final ImmutableNode node, final String name) {
    301                    final List<ImmutableNode> children = super.getChildren(node, name);
    302                    return filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(node, children);
    303                }
    304
    305                @Override
    306                public int getChildrenCount(final ImmutableNode node, final String name) {
    307                    final List<ImmutableNode> children = name != null ? super.getChildren(node, name) : super.getChildren(node);
    308                    return filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(node, children).size();
    309                }
    310
    311                @Override
    312                protected NodeHandler<ImmutableNode> getDecoratedNodeHandler() {
    313                    return GlobalSectionNodeModel.super.getNodeHandler();
    314                }
    315
    316                @Override
    317                public int indexOfChild(final ImmutableNode parent, final ImmutableNode child) {
    318                    final List<ImmutableNode> children = super.getChildren(parent);
    319                    return filterChildrenOfGlobalSection(parent, children).indexOf(child);
    320                }
    321            };
    322        }
    323    }
    324
    325    /**
    326     * The empty key.
    327     */
    328    private static final String EMPTY_KEY = " ";
    329
    330    /**
    331     * The default characters that signal the start of a comment line.
    332     */
    333    protected static final String COMMENT_CHARS = "#;";
    334
    335    /**
    336     * The default characters used to separate keys from values.
    337     */
    338    protected static final String SEPARATOR_CHARS = "=:";
    339
    340    /**
    341     * Constant for the line separator.
    342     */
    343    private static final String LINE_SEPARATOR = System.lineSeparator();
    344
    345    /**
    346     * The characters used for quoting values.
    347     */
    348    private static final String QUOTE_CHARACTERS = "\"'";
    349
    350    /**
    351     * The line continuation character.
    352     */
    353    private static final String LINE_CONT = "\\";
    354
    355    /**
    356     * Creates a new builder.
    357     *
    358     * @return a new builder.
    359     * @since 2.9.0
    360     */
    361    public static Builder builder() {
    362        return new Builder();
    363    }
    364
    365    /**
    366     * Creates a new root node from the builders constructed while reading the configuration file.
    367     *
    368     * @param rootBuilder the builder for the top-level section
    369     * @param sectionBuilders a map storing the section builders
    370     * @return the root node of the newly created hierarchy
    371     */
    372    private static ImmutableNode createNewRootNode(final ImmutableNode.Builder rootBuilder, final Map<String, ImmutableNode.Builder> sectionBuilders) {
    373        sectionBuilders.forEach((k, v) -> rootBuilder.addChild(v.name(k).create()));
    374        return rootBuilder.create();
    375    }
    376
    377    /**
    378     * Checks for the occurrence of the specified separators in the given line. The index of the first separator is
    379     * returned.
    380     *
    381     * @param line the line to be investigated
    382     * @param separators a string with the separator characters to look for
    383     * @return the lowest index of a separator character or -1 if no separator is found
    384     */
    385    private static int findFirstOccurrence(final String line, final String separators) {
    386        int index = -1;
    387
    388        for (int i = 0; i < separators.length(); i++) {
    389            final char sep = separators.charAt(i);
    390            final int pos = line.indexOf(sep);
    391            if (pos >= 0 && (index < 0 || pos < index)) {
    392                index = pos;
    393            }
    394        }
    395
    396        return index;
    397    }
    398
    399    /**
    400     * Searches for a separator character directly before a quoting character. If the first non-whitespace character before
    401     * a quote character is a separator, it is considered the "real" separator in this line - even if there are other
    402     * separators before.
    403     *
    404     * @param line the line to be investigated
    405     * @param quoteIndex the index of the quote character
    406     * @return the index of the separator before the quote or &lt; 0 if there is none
    407     */
    408    private static int findSeparatorBeforeQuote(final String line, final int quoteIndex) {
    409        int index = quoteIndex - 1;
    410        while (index >= 0 && Character.isWhitespace(line.charAt(index))) {
    411            index--;
    412        }
    413
    414        if (index >= 0 && SEPARATOR_CHARS.indexOf(line.charAt(index)) < 0) {
    415            index = -1;
    416        }
    417
    418        return index;
    419    }
    420
    421    /**
    422     * Determine if the given line contains a section - inline comments are allowed.
    423     *
    424     * @param line The line to check.
    425     * @return true if the line contains a section
    426     */
    427    private static boolean isNonStrictSection(final String line) {
    428        return line.startsWith("[") && line.contains("]");
    429    }
    430
    431    /**
    432     * Checks whether the specified configuration node represents a section.
    433     *
    434     * @param node the node in question
    435     * @return a flag whether this node represents a section
    436     */
    437    private static boolean isSectionNode(final ImmutableNode node) {
    438        return node.getValue() == null;
    439    }
    440
    441    /**
    442     * Determine if the entire given line is a section - inline comments are not allowed.
    443     *
    444     * @param line The line to check.
    445     * @return true if the entire line is a section
    446     */
    447    private static boolean isStrictSection(final String line) {
    448        return line.startsWith("[") && line.endsWith("]");
    449    }
    450
    451    /**
    452     * Tests whether the specified string contains a line continuation marker.
    453     *
    454     * @param line the string to check
    455     * @return a flag whether this line continues
    456     */
    457    private static boolean lineContinues(final String line) {
    458        final String s = line.trim();
    459        return s.equals(LINE_CONT) || s.length() > 2 && s.endsWith(LINE_CONT) && Character.isWhitespace(s.charAt(s.length() - 2));
    460    }
    461
    462    /**
    463     * The separator used when writing an INI file.
    464     */
    465    private String separatorUsedInOutput = " = ";
    466
    467    /**
    468     * The separator used when reading an INI file.
    469     */
    470    private String separatorUsedInInput = SEPARATOR_CHARS;
    471
    472    /**
    473     * The characters used to separate keys from values when reading an INI file.
    474     */
    475    private String commentCharsUsedInInput = COMMENT_CHARS;
    476
    477    /**
    478     * The flag for decision, whether inline comments on the section line are allowed.
    479     */
    480    private boolean sectionInLineCommentsAllowed;
    481
    482    /**
    483     * Create a new empty INI Configuration.
    484     */
    485    public INIConfiguration() {
    486    }
    487
    488    /**
    489     * Create a new empty INI Configuration with option to allow inline comments on the section line.
    490     *
    491     * @param sectionInLineCommentsAllowed when true inline comments on the section line are allowed
    492     */
    493    private INIConfiguration(final boolean sectionInLineCommentsAllowed) {
    494        this.sectionInLineCommentsAllowed = sectionInLineCommentsAllowed;
    495    }
    496
    497    /**
    498     * Creates a new instance of {@code INIConfiguration} with the content of the specified
    499     * {@code HierarchicalConfiguration}.
    500     *
    501     * @param c the configuration to be copied
    502     * @since 2.0
    503     */
    504    public INIConfiguration(final HierarchicalConfiguration<ImmutableNode> c) {
    505        super(c);
    506    }
    507
    508    /**
    509     * Reads the content of an INI file from the passed in reader and creates a structure of builders for constructing the
    510     * {@code ImmutableNode} objects representing the data.
    511     *
    512     * @param in the reader
    513     * @param rootBuilder the builder for the top-level section
    514     * @param sectionBuilders a map storing the section builders
    515     * @throws IOException if an I/O error occurs.
    516     */
    517    private void createNodeBuilders(final BufferedReader in, final ImmutableNode.Builder rootBuilder, final Map<String, ImmutableNode.Builder> sectionBuilders)
    518        throws IOException {
    519        ImmutableNode.Builder sectionBuilder = rootBuilder;
    520        String line = in.readLine();
    521        while (line != null) {
    522            line = line.trim();
    523            if (!isCommentLine(line)) {
    524                if (isSectionLine(line)) {
    525                    final int length = sectionInLineCommentsAllowed ? line.indexOf("]") : line.length() - 1;
    526                    String section = line.substring(1, length);
    527                    if (section.isEmpty()) {
    528                        // use space for sections with no key
    529                        section = EMPTY_KEY;
    530                    }
    531                    sectionBuilder = sectionBuilders.computeIfAbsent(section, k -> new ImmutableNode.Builder());
    532                } else {
    533                    String key;
    534                    String value = "";
    535                    final int index = findSeparator(line);
    536                    if (index >= 0) {
    537                        key = line.substring(0, index);
    538                        value = parseValue(line.substring(index + 1), in);
    539                    } else {
    540                        key = line;
    541                    }
    542                    key = key.trim();
    543                    if (key.isEmpty()) {
    544                        // use space for properties with no key
    545                        key = EMPTY_KEY;
    546                    }
    547                    createValueNodes(sectionBuilder, key, value);
    548                }
    549            }
    550
    551            line = in.readLine();
    552        }
    553    }
    554
    555    /**
    556     * Creates the node(s) for the given key value-pair. If delimiter parsing is enabled, the value string is split if
    557     * possible, and for each single value a node is created. Otherwise only a single node is added to the section.
    558     *
    559     * @param sectionBuilder the section builder for adding new nodes
    560     * @param key the key
    561     * @param value the value string
    562     */
    563    private void createValueNodes(final ImmutableNode.Builder sectionBuilder, final String key, final String value) {
    564        getListDelimiterHandler().split(value, false).forEach(v -> sectionBuilder.addChild(new ImmutableNode.Builder().name(key).value(v).create()));
    565    }
    566
    567    /**
    568     * Escapes comment characters in the given value.
    569     *
    570     * @param value the value to be escaped
    571     * @return the value with comment characters escaped
    572     */
    573    private String escapeComments(final String value) {
    574        final String commentChars = getCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput();
    575        boolean quoted = false;
    576
    577        for (int i = 0; i < commentChars.length(); i++) {
    578            final char c = commentChars.charAt(i);
    579            if (value.indexOf(c) != -1) {
    580                quoted = true;
    581                break;
    582            }
    583        }
    584
    585        if (quoted) {
    586            return '"' + value.replace("\"", "\\\"") + '"';
    587        }
    588        return value;
    589    }
    590
    591    /**
    592     * Escapes the given property value before it is written. This method add quotes around the specified value if it
    593     * contains a comment character and handles list delimiter characters.
    594     *
    595     * @param value the string to be escaped
    596     */
    597    private String escapeValue(final String value) {
    598        return String.valueOf(getListDelimiterHandler().escape(escapeComments(value), ListDelimiterHandler.NOOP_TRANSFORMER));
    599    }
    600
    601    /**
    602     * Finds the index of the separator character in the given string. This method checks for the presence of
    603     * separator characters in the given string. If multiple characters are found, the first one is assumed to be the
    604     * correct separator. If there are quoting characters, they are taken into account, too.
    605     *
    606     * @param line the line to be checked
    607     * @return the index of the separator character or -1 if none is found
    608     */
    609    private int findSeparator(final String line) {
    610        int index = findSeparatorBeforeQuote(line, findFirstOccurrence(line, QUOTE_CHARACTERS));
    611        if (index < 0) {
    612            index = findFirstOccurrence(line, getSeparatorUsedInInput());
    613        }
    614        return index;
    615    }
    616
    617    /**
    618     * Gets comment leading separator used in INI reading. see {@code setCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput} for further
    619     * explanation
    620     *
    621     * @return the current separator for reading the INI input
    622     * @since 2.5
    623     */
    624    public String getCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput() {
    625        return syncReadValue(commentCharsUsedInInput, false);
    626    }
    627
    628    /**
    629     * Creates a sub configuration for the global section of the represented INI configuration.
    630     *
    631     * @return the sub configuration for the global section
    632     */
    633    private SubnodeConfiguration getGlobalSection() {
    634        final InMemoryNodeModel parentModel = getSubConfigurationParentModel();
    635        final NodeSelector selector = new NodeSelector(null); // selects parent
    636        parentModel.trackNode(selector, this);
    637        final GlobalSectionNodeModel model = new GlobalSectionNodeModel(this, selector);
    638        final SubnodeConfiguration sub = new SubnodeConfiguration(this, model);
    639        initSubConfigurationForThisParent(sub);
    640        return sub;
    641    }
    642
    643    /**
    644     * Gets a configuration with the content of the specified section. This provides an easy way of working with a single
    645     * section only. The way this configuration is structured internally, this method is very similar to calling
    646     * {@link HierarchicalConfiguration#configurationAt(String)} with the name of the section in question. There are the
    647     * following differences however:
    648     * <ul>
    649     * <li>This method never throws an exception. If the section does not exist, it is created now. The configuration
    650     * returned in this case is empty.</li>
    651     * <li>If section is contained multiple times in the configuration, the configuration returned by this method is
    652     * initialized with the first occurrence of the section. (This can only happen if {@code addProperty()} has been used in
    653     * a way that does not conform to the storage scheme used by {@code INIConfiguration}. If used correctly, there will not
    654     * be duplicate sections.)</li>
    655     * <li>There is special support for the global section: Passing in <strong>null</strong> as section name returns a configuration
    656     * with the content of the global section (which may also be empty).</li>
    657     * </ul>
    658     *
    659     * @param name the name of the section in question; <strong>null</strong> represents the global section
    660     * @return a configuration containing only the properties of the specified section
    661     */
    662    public SubnodeConfiguration getSection(final String name) {
    663        if (name == null) {
    664            return getGlobalSection();
    665        }
    666        try {
    667            return (SubnodeConfiguration) configurationAt(name, true);
    668        } catch (final ConfigurationRuntimeException iex) {
    669            // the passed in key does not map to exactly one node
    670            // obtain the node for the section, create it on demand
    671            final InMemoryNodeModel parentModel = getSubConfigurationParentModel();
    672            final NodeSelector selector = parentModel.trackChildNodeWithCreation(null, name, this);
    673            return createSubConfigurationForTrackedNode(selector, this);
    674        }
    675    }
    676
    677    /**
    678     * Gets a set containing the sections in this INI configuration. Note that changes to this set do not affect the
    679     * configuration.
    680     *
    681     * @return a set containing the sections.
    682     */
    683    public Set<String> getSections() {
    684        return syncRead(() -> {
    685            final Set<String> sections = new LinkedHashSet<>();
    686            boolean globalSection = false;
    687            boolean inSection = false;
    688            for (final ImmutableNode node : getModel().getNodeHandler().getRootNode().getChildren()) {
    689                if (isSectionNode(node)) {
    690                    inSection = true;
    691                    sections.add(node.getNodeName());
    692                } else if (!inSection && !globalSection) {
    693                    globalSection = true;
    694                    sections.add(null);
    695                }
    696            }
    697            return sections;
    698        }, false);
    699    }
    700
    701    /**
    702     * Gets separator used in INI reading. see {@code setSeparatorUsedInInput} for further explanation
    703     *
    704     * @return the current separator for reading the INI input
    705     * @since 2.5
    706     */
    707    public String getSeparatorUsedInInput() {
    708        return syncReadValue(separatorUsedInInput, false);
    709    }
    710
    711    /**
    712     * Gets separator used in INI output. see {@code setSeparatorUsedInOutput} for further explanation
    713     *
    714     * @return the current separator for writing the INI output
    715     * @since 2.2
    716     */
    717    public String getSeparatorUsedInOutput() {
    718        return syncReadValue(separatorUsedInOutput, false);
    719    }
    720
    721    /**
    722     * Tests whether the specified character is a comment character.
    723     *
    724     * @param c the character
    725     * @return a flag whether this character starts a comment
    726     */
    727    private boolean isCommentChar(final char c) {
    728        return getCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput().indexOf(c) >= 0;
    729    }
    730
    731    /**
    732     * Tests if the given line is a comment line.
    733     *
    734     * @param line The line to check.
    735     * @return true if the line is empty or starts with one of the comment characters
    736     */
    737    protected boolean isCommentLine(final String line) {
    738        if (line == null) {
    739            return false;
    740        }
    741        // blank lines are also treated as comment lines
    742        return line.isEmpty() || getCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput().indexOf(line.charAt(0)) >= 0;
    743    }
    744
    745    /**
    746     * Tests if the given line is a section.
    747     *
    748     * @param line The line to check.
    749     * @return true if the line contains a section
    750     */
    751    protected boolean isSectionLine(final String line) {
    752        if (line == null) {
    753            return false;
    754        }
    755        return sectionInLineCommentsAllowed ? isNonStrictSection(line) : isStrictSection(line);
    756    }
    757
    758    /**
    759     * Tests whether the specified string contains a line continuation marker after the specified position. This method
    760     * parses the string to remove a comment that might be present. Then it checks whether a line continuation marker can be
    761     * found at the end.
    762     *
    763     * @param line the line to check
    764     * @param pos the start position
    765     * @return a flag whether this line continues
    766     */
    767    private boolean lineContinues(final String line, final int pos) {
    768        final String s;
    769
    770        if (pos >= line.length()) {
    771            s = line;
    772        } else {
    773            int end = pos;
    774            while (end < line.length() && !isCommentChar(line.charAt(end))) {
    775                end++;
    776            }
    777            s = line.substring(pos, end);
    778        }
    779
    780        return lineContinues(s);
    781    }
    782
    783    /**
    784     * Parses the value to remove the quotes and ignoring the comment. Example:
    785     *
    786     * <pre>
    787     * &quot;value&quot; ; comment -&gt; value
    788     * </pre>
    789     *
    790     * <pre>
    791     * 'value' ; comment -&gt; value
    792     * </pre>
    793     *
    794     * Note that a comment character is only recognized if there is at least one whitespace character before it. So it can
    795     * appear in the property value, for example:
    796     *
    797     * <pre>
    798     * C:\\Windows;C:\\Windows\\system32
    799     * </pre>
    800     *
    801     * @param val the value to be parsed
    802     * @param reader the reader (needed if multiple lines have to be read)
    803     * @throws IOException if an IO error occurs
    804     */
    805    private String parseValue(final String val, final BufferedReader reader) throws IOException {
    806        final StringBuilder propertyValue = new StringBuilder();
    807        boolean lineContinues;
    808        String value = val.trim();
    809
    810        do {
    811            final boolean quoted = value.startsWith("\"") || value.startsWith("'");
    812            boolean stop = false;
    813            boolean escape = false;
    814
    815            final char quote = quoted ? value.charAt(0) : 0;
    816
    817            int i = quoted ? 1 : 0;
    818
    819            final StringBuilder result = new StringBuilder();
    820            char lastChar = 0;
    821            while (i < value.length() && !stop) {
    822                final char c = value.charAt(i);
    823
    824                if (quoted) {
    825                    if ('\\' == c && !escape) {
    826                        escape = true;
    827                    } else if (!escape && quote == c) {
    828                        stop = true;
    829                    } else {
    830                        if (escape && quote == c) {
    831                            escape = false;
    832                        } else if (escape) {
    833                            escape = false;
    834                            result.append('\\');
    835                        }
    836                        result.append(c);
    837                    }
    838                } else if (isCommentChar(c) && Character.isWhitespace(lastChar)) {
    839                    stop = true;
    840                } else {
    841                    result.append(c);
    842                }
    843
    844                i++;
    845                lastChar = c;
    846            }
    847
    848            String v = result.toString();
    849            if (!quoted) {
    850                v = v.trim();
    851                lineContinues = lineContinues(v);
    852                if (lineContinues) {
    853                    // remove trailing "\"
    854                    v = v.substring(0, v.length() - 1).trim();
    855                }
    856            } else {
    857                lineContinues = lineContinues(value, i);
    858            }
    859            propertyValue.append(v);
    860
    861            if (lineContinues) {
    862                propertyValue.append(LINE_SEPARATOR);
    863                value = reader.readLine();
    864            }
    865        } while (lineContinues && value != null);
    866
    867        return propertyValue.toString();
    868    }
    869
    870    /**
    871     * Reads the configuration from the given reader. Note that the {@code clear()} method is not called so the configuration
    872     * read in will be merged with the current configuration.
    873     *
    874     * @param in the reader to read the configuration from.
    875     * @throws ConfigurationException If an error occurs while reading the configuration
    876     * @throws IOException if an I/O error occurs.
    877     */
    878    @Override
    879    public void read(final Reader in) throws ConfigurationException, IOException {
    880        final BufferedReader bufferedReader = new BufferedReader(in);
    881        final Map<String, ImmutableNode.Builder> sectionBuilders = new LinkedHashMap<>();
    882        final ImmutableNode.Builder rootBuilder = new ImmutableNode.Builder();
    883
    884        createNodeBuilders(bufferedReader, rootBuilder, sectionBuilders);
    885        final ImmutableNode rootNode = createNewRootNode(rootBuilder, sectionBuilders);
    886        addNodes(null, rootNode.getChildren());
    887    }
    888
    889    /**
    890     * Sets the leading comment separator which is used in reading an INI file
    891     *
    892     * @param separator String of the new separator for INI reading
    893     * @since 2.5
    894     */
    895    public void setCommentLeadingCharsUsedInInput(final String separator) {
    896        beginRead(false);
    897        try {
    898            this.commentCharsUsedInInput = separator;
    899        } finally {
    900            endRead();
    901        }
    902    }
    903
    904    /**
    905     * Sets the key and value separator which is used in reading an INI file
    906     *
    907     * @param separator String of the new separator for INI reading
    908     * @since 2.5
    909     */
    910    public void setSeparatorUsedInInput(final String separator) {
    911        beginRead(false);
    912        try {
    913            this.separatorUsedInInput = separator;
    914        } finally {
    915            endRead();
    916        }
    917    }
    918
    919    /**
    920     * Sets the key and value separator which is used for the creation of the resulting INI output
    921     *
    922     * @param separator String of the new separator for INI output
    923     * @since 2.2
    924     */
    925    public void setSeparatorUsedInOutput(final String separator) {
    926        syncWrite(() -> this.separatorUsedInOutput = separator, false);
    927    }
    928
    929    /**
    930     * Writes the configuration to the specified writer.
    931     *
    932     * @param writer   The writer to save the configuration to.
    933     * @throws ConfigurationException If an error occurs while writing the configuration
    934     * @throws IOException if an I/O error occurs.
    935     */
    936    @Override
    937    public void write(final Writer writer) throws ConfigurationException, IOException {
    938        syncRead(() -> {
    939            final PrintWriter out = new PrintWriter(writer);
    940            boolean first = true;
    941            final String separator = getSeparatorUsedInOutput();
    942            for (final ImmutableNode node : getModel().getNodeHandler().getRootNode().getChildren()) {
    943                if (isSectionNode(node)) {
    944                    if (!first) {
    945                        out.println();
    946                    }
    947                    out.print("[");
    948                    out.print(node.getNodeName());
    949                    out.print("]");
    950                    out.println();
    951
    952                    node.forEach(child -> writeProperty(out, child.getNodeName(), child.getValue(), separator));
    953                } else {
    954                    writeProperty(out, node.getNodeName(), node.getValue(), separator);
    955                }
    956                first = false;
    957            }
    958            out.println();
    959            out.flush();
    960
    961        }, false);
    962    }
    963
    964    /**
    965     * Writes data about a property into the given stream.
    966     *
    967     * @param out the output stream
    968     * @param key the key
    969     * @param value the value
    970     */
    971    private void writeProperty(final PrintWriter out, final String key, final Object value, final String separator) {
    972        out.print(key);
    973        out.print(separator);
    974        out.print(escapeValue(value.toString()));
    975        out.println();
    976    }
    977}