# JSON Parser
The *JSON Parser* reads and processes a single stream of text in a JSON format as input and returns its elements as a parsed output in JSON format. It enables users to transform an otherwise semi-structured data into a structured hierarchical format.
In this document, we will learn how to use the *JSON Parser* to parse an incoming text stream in Astera.
### Use Case
In this case, we are using an [Excel Workbook Source](https://documentation.astera.com/dataflows/sources/excel-workbook-source).
This source file contains hierarchical details of customer’s orders.
To preview data, right-click on the source object’s header and select *Preview Output* from the context menu.
A *Data Preview* window will open, displaying the source data.
Observe that it is difficult to decipher fields and elements when the data is in a text stream. To make sense of this data, it needs to be structured in a proper hierarchical format.
To parse this source data, we will use the *JSON Parser* object in Astera.
#### Using JSON Parser
1. To get the *JSON Parser* object, go to *Toolbox > Text Processors > Parser* and drag-and-drop the object onto the designer.\
You can see that the dragged object contains a *Text* field.
2. Map the *Text* field in *Customer\_Orders* object to the *Text* field in the *JSON Parser* object.
3. Next, we need to define the layout of our parsed output. Astera provides a few ways to define the layout:
* *Run Flow to Generate Layout:* Right-click the object’s header and select Run Flow to Generate Layout to automatically generate the layout based on the flow output.
* *Manual Layout Configuration:* Right-click the header and select *Properties*. In the layout screen, you can define the preferred layout manually.
* *Generate from Sample Text:* In the layout window, you can also use the *Generate Layout by Providing Sample Text* option to auto-generate the layout using an example input.
4. Once you are satisfied with the layout click *OK.*
The data stream is parsed into regions and fields which can be seen on the *JSON Parser* object.
5. Right-click on the object’s header and select *Preview Output* from the context menu.\
A *Data Preview* window will open. Expand the nodes, and you will see the parsed output for each record.
To store this parsed output, write it to a destination.
6. Right-click on the *Output* node under *JSON Parser* object, go to *Write to > JSON File Destination*. A *JSON File Destination* object is added to the dataflow designer with all fields auto-mapped to it.
7. Configure settings for the [*JSON File Destination*](/dataflows/destinations/json-file-destination.md) object.
8. Click on the *Start Dataflow* button in the toolbar to create the destination file.
A JSON destination file will be successfully created, with parsed output in JSON format.
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