Convert a Complete App Configuration Plist to JSON

Complete Configuration Example

This example demonstrates a comprehensive plist using every supported type: dict, array, string, integer, real, boolean (true/false), date, and data. It represents a realistic application configuration file.

Plist Structure

<dict>
  <key>AppName</key>
  <string>DevToolbox</string>
  <key>Version</key>
  <integer>3</integer>
  <key>BuildTimestamp</key>
  <date>2025-12-20T15:45:00Z</date>
  <key>ScaleFactor</key>
  <real>1.5</real>
  <key>DarkModeEnabled</key>
  <true/>
  <key>TelemetryEnabled</key>
  <false/>
  <key>SplashImage</key>
  <data>UE5H...</data>
  <key>SupportedLanguages</key>
  <array>
    <string>en</string>
    <string>ja</string>
    <string>de</string>
  </array>
  <key>Endpoints</key>
  <dict>
    <key>API</key>
    <string>https://api.example.com</string>
    <key>CDN</key>
    <string>https://cdn.example.com</string>
  </dict>
</dict>

Type Badge Summary

When viewing in the tree, you will see every type badge:

• dict (blue-indigo) -- root and Endpoints
• string (green) -- AppName, languages, URLs
• integer (blue) -- Version
• real (cyan) -- ScaleFactor
• boolean (orange) -- DarkModeEnabled, TelemetryEnabled
• date (purple) -- BuildTimestamp
• data (rose) -- SplashImage
• array (yellow) -- SupportedLanguages

Round-Trip Fidelity

For most types, converting plist -> JSON -> plist produces an identical file. The exceptions are:

1. date -- only detected on reverse if the string matches ISO 8601
2. data -- Base64 strings in JSON are not auto-detected as <data> on reverse
3. real vs integer -- 2.0 in plist may become 2 (integer) in JSON and then <integer>2</integer> on reverse

Understanding these edge cases helps ensure correct round-trip conversion.