Extracting NFT metadata from Hedera blockchain

NFT
1

I’m stuck trying to get NFT metadata from the Hedera chain. When we made the NFT, we changed the CID to unit8array. But now when I try to get the data back, it’s all messed up.

I can’t figure out how to retrieve the original CID value from the metadata. It’s odd because when I check the Hackpack wallet, I still see the NFT images, which means the data isn’t lost, it just isn’t formatted properly.

I’ve attempted to convert the input to different formats like [unit8array] and unit8array, but I keep getting some odd encoded value. The metadata output is neither in hex nor in binary format.

I really need to convert it back to a CID to display the NFT image on my website. Any suggestions on how to resolve this?

2

hey there Ben_Comics! sounds like you’re in a bit of a pickle with those NFT metadata. i’ve run into similar issues before and it can be super frustrating :weary:

have you tried using the IPFS gateway to retrieve the metadata? sometimes that can help bypass the encoding issues. Another thing to check - are you sure the CID you’re getting back is the full CID and not just a partial hash?

just brainstorming here, but what if you tried converting the unit8array back to a string first, then parsing that? might help get it into a more usable format.

also curious - what method are you using to query the metadata from hedera? there might be some SDK-specific quirks at play.

keep us posted on how it goes! nft stuff can be tricky but im sure youll figure it out :+1:

3

yo Ben, that sounds like a real headache! have u tried using a buffer to convert the uint8array back to a string? something like Buffer.from(uint8Array).toString(‘utf-8’) might do the trick. also, double-check ur metadata retrieval code - could be a sneaky bug in there messing things up. good luck man!

4

I’ve encountered similar issues when working with NFT metadata on Hedera. One approach that’s worked for me is using the @hashgraph/sdk library to properly decode the metadata. Specifically, the TokenNftInfo.getMetadata() method can help retrieve the original metadata in the correct format.

If that doesn’t work, you might need to implement a custom decoding function. Start by converting the uint8array to a buffer, then to a string, and finally parse it as JSON. Something like:

const metadataBuffer = Buffer.from(uint8ArrayMetadata);
const metadataString = metadataBuffer.toString(‘utf8’);
const metadata = JSON.parse(metadataString);

This should give you access to the original CID. Let me know if you need more specific guidance on implementation.