Java – InputStream to Reader

In this quick tutorial we’re going to take a look at converting an InputStream to a Reader using Java, then Guava and finally Apache Commons IO.

This article is part of the “Java – Back to Basic” series here on VietMX’s Blog.

1. With Java

First, let’s look at the simple Java solution – using the readily available InputStreamReader:

@Test
public void givenUsingPlainJava_whenConvertingInputStreamIntoReader_thenCorrect() 
  throws IOException {
    InputStream initialStream = new ByteArrayInputStream("With Java".getBytes());
    
    Reader targetReader = new InputStreamReader(initialStream);

    targetReader.close();
}

2. With Guava

Next – let’s take a look at the Guava solution – using an intermediary byte array and String:

@Test
public void givenUsingGuava_whenConvertingInputStreamIntoReader_thenCorrect() 
  throws IOException {
    InputStream initialStream = ByteSource.wrap("With Guava".getBytes()).openStream();
    
    byte[] buffer = ByteStreams.toByteArray(initialStream);
    Reader targetReader = CharSource.wrap(new String(buffer)).openStream();

    targetReader.close();
}

Note that the Java solution is simpler than this approach.

3. With Commons IO

Finally – the solution using Apache Commons IO – also using an intermediary String:

@Test
public void givenUsingCommonsIO_whenConvertingInputStreamIntoReader_thenCorrect() 
  throws IOException {
    InputStream initialStream = IOUtils.toInputStream("With Commons IO");
    
    byte[] buffer = IOUtils.toByteArray(initialStream);
    Reader targetReader = new CharSequenceReader(new String(buffer));

    targetReader.close();
}

And there you have it – 3 quick ways to convert the input stream to a Java Reader. Make sure to check out the sample over on GitHub.