Windows PDF Printer Native

A high-performance PDF printing library for Node.js on Windows. Print PDFs directly to Windows printers using native GDI32 API and Google's PDFium rendering engine.


Table of Contents

- Features
- Requirements
- Installation
- Quick Start
- Usage Examples
- API Reference
- Performance
- More Examples
- Troubleshooting
- Documentation
- Contributing
- License

Features

- 🖨️ Windows Native - Direct integration with Windows printing system (GDI32 + PDFium)
- ⚡ High Performance - 44% faster than legacy approaches
- 📄 Quality Control - Print at 150, 300, or 600 DPI
- 🎯 Full Configuration - Paper size, duplex, orientation, color mode, paper tray
- 📦 TypeScript Support - Full type definitions included
- 🔧 No Setup Required - PDFium library included in the package

Requirements

- Node.js 22.0.0 or higher
- Windows 7 or later (Windows 10/11 recommended)

Installation

``bash
npm install windows-pdf-printer-native
`

> Note: All required dependencies (including PDFium) are included. No additional setup needed!

Quick Start

`typescript
import { PDFPrinter } from 'windows-pdf-printer-native';

// Print to default printer
const printer = new PDFPrinter();
await printer.print('./document.pdf');

// Print to specific printer
const printer = new PDFPrinter('HP LaserJet Pro');
await printer.print('./invoice.pdf');
`

Usage Examples

$3

`typescript
import { PDFPrinter, PrinterManager } from 'windows-pdf-printer-native';

// List available printers
const printers = await PrinterManager.getAvailablePrinters();
printers.forEach(p => console.log(p.name));

// Get default printer
const defaultPrinter = await PrinterManager.getDefaultPrinter();

// Print with default settings (300 DPI)
const printer = new PDFPrinter();
await printer.print('./document.pdf');
`

$3

`typescript
import {
PDFPrinter,
PrintQuality,
PaperSize,
DuplexMode,
PageOrientation,
ColorMode,
PaperTray
} from 'windows-pdf-printer-native';

const printer = new PDFPrinter();

await printer.print('./document.pdf', {
copies: 2,
quality: PrintQuality.HIGH, // 600 DPI
paperSize: PaperSize.A4, // 210 x 297 mm
duplex: DuplexMode.VERTICAL, // Long-edge binding
orientation: PageOrientation.LANDSCAPE, // Horizontal
color: ColorMode.COLOR, // Color printing
paperTray: PaperTray.AUTO // Auto-select tray
});
`

$3

`typescript
import { PrintQuality } from 'windows-pdf-printer-native';

// Low quality - fast (150 DPI)
await printer.print('./draft.pdf', {
quality: PrintQuality.LOW
});

// Medium quality - default (300 DPI)
await printer.print('./document.pdf', {
quality: PrintQuality.MEDIUM
});

// High quality - best for images (600 DPI)
await printer.print('./photo.pdf', {
quality: PrintQuality.HIGH
});
`

$3

`typescript
// Show Windows print dialog
await printer.print('./document.pdf', {
showPrintDialog: true
});

// Pre-populate dialog settings
await printer.print('./document.pdf', {
showPrintDialog: true,
copies: 2,
duplex: DuplexMode.VERTICAL,
paperSize: PaperSize.A4
});
`

API Reference

$3

#### PDFPrinter

Main class for printing PDF documents.

API Reference

$3

Main class for printing PDF documents.

#### Constructor
`typescript
new PDFPrinter(printerName?: string)
`

Parameters:
- printerName (optional): Name of the printer. If not provided, uses the system default printer.

#### Methods

##### print(pdfPath: string, options?: PrintOptions): Promise

Print a PDF file.

`typescript
await printer.print('./document.pdf', {
copies: 2,
quality: PrintQuality.HIGH,
paperSize: PaperSize.A4,
duplex: DuplexMode.VERTICAL
});
`

Parameters:
- pdfPath: Absolute or relative path to the PDF file
- options: Print configuration options (see PrintOptions below)

##### printRaw(data: Buffer, documentName?: string, options?: PrintOptions): Promise

Print from a PDF buffer.

`typescript
const pdfBuffer = fs.readFileSync('./doc.pdf');
await printer.printRaw(pdfBuffer, 'MyDocument', options);
`

Parameters:
- data: PDF file as Buffer
- documentName (optional): Name for the print job
- options: Print configuration options

##### getPrinterName(): string

Get the name of the printer being used.

`typescript
const name = printer.getPrinterName();
console.log('Using printer:', name);
`

##### setCacheEnabled(enabled: boolean): void

Enable or disable page caching. Caching improves performance when printing multiple copies but uses more memory.

`typescript
// Disable cache for batch processing
printer.setCacheEnabled(false);
`

$3

Static class for managing printers.

#### Methods

##### getAvailablePrinters(): Promise

List all available printers.

`typescript
const printers = await PrinterManager.getAvailablePrinters();
printers.forEach(p => console.log(p.name));
`

##### getDefaultPrinter(): Promise

Get the default printer name.

`typescript
const defaultPrinter = await PrinterManager.getDefaultPrinter();
`

##### printerExists(printerName: string): Promise

Check if a printer exists.

`typescript
const exists = await PrinterManager.printerExists('HP LaserJet');
`

$3

Configuration options for printing.

`typescript
interface PrintOptions {
copies?: number; // Number of copies (default: 1)
quality?: PrintQuality; // Print quality (default: MEDIUM)
paperSize?: PaperSize; // Paper size (default: printer default)
duplex?: DuplexMode; // Duplex mode (default: SIMPLEX)
orientation?: PageOrientation; // Page orientation (default: PORTRAIT)
color?: ColorMode; // Color mode (default: COLOR)
paperTray?: PaperTray; // Paper tray (default: AUTO)
collate?: boolean; // Collate copies (default: false)
showPrintDialog?: boolean; // Show print dialog (default: false)
}
`

$3

#### PrintQuality
`typescript
enum PrintQuality {
LOW = 150, // Fast, lower quality
MEDIUM = 300, // Balanced (default)
HIGH = 600 // Best quality, slower
}
`

#### PaperSize
`typescript
enum PaperSize {
LETTER = 1, // 8.5 x 11 inches
LEGAL = 5, // 8.5 x 14 inches
A3 = 8, // 297 x 420 mm
A4 = 9, // 210 x 297 mm
A5 = 11, // 148 x 210 mm
TABLOID = 3, // 11 x 17 inches
// ... 95 total sizes available
}
`

#### DuplexMode
`typescript
enum DuplexMode {
SIMPLEX = 1, // Single-sided
HORIZONTAL = 2, // Flip on short edge
VERTICAL = 3 // Flip on long edge
}
`

#### PageOrientation
`typescript
enum PageOrientation {
PORTRAIT = 1, // Vertical
LANDSCAPE = 2 // Horizontal
}
`

#### ColorMode
`typescript
enum ColorMode {
MONOCHROME = 1, // Black and white
COLOR = 2 // Color
}
`

#### PaperTray
`typescript
enum PaperTray {
AUTO = 7, // Automatic selection
UPPER = 1, // Upper tray
LOWER = 2, // Lower tray
MIDDLE = 3, // Middle tray
MANUAL = 4, // Manual feed
ENVELOPE = 5, // Envelope feeder
// ... more options available
}
`

$3

Information about a printer.

`typescript
interface PrinterInfo {
name: string; // Printer name
serverName?: string; // Server name (for network printers)
portName?: string; // Port name
driverName?: string; // Driver name
location?: string; // Physical location
comment?: string; // Description
status: number; // Status code
isDefault?: boolean; // Is default printer
}
`

Performance

This library is optimized for high performance:

- ⚡ 44% faster than legacy approaches
- 🔥 Page caching - Render once, print multiple copies instantly
- 💾 Memory efficient - Smart bitmap lifecycle management

$3

| Quality | DPI | Speed | Best For |
|---------|-----|-------|----------|
| LOW | 150 | Fast | Draft documents |
| MEDIUM | 300 | Balanced ⭐ | Standard documents |
| HIGH | 600 | Slower | Photos, presentations |

$3

`typescript
// For multiple copies - use cache (enabled by default)
await printer.print('./report.pdf', { copies: 10 });

// For batch processing - disable cache
printer.setCacheEnabled(false);
for (const file of files) {
await printer.print(file);
}
`

📖 See detailed benchmarks and optimization strategies in Performance Guide

More Examples

Check the examples/ directory for complete working examples:

- simple-print.ts - Basic printing
- advanced-print.ts - Full configuration
- list-printers.ts - Enumerate printers
- print-with-dialog.ts - Interactive dialog
- test-performance.ts - Performance testing

Troubleshooting

$3

Printer not found?
`typescript
// List all available printers
const printers = await PrinterManager.getAvailablePrinters();
console.log(printers);
`

Print job fails?
- Verify printer is online and not paused
- Check printer permissions
- Ensure printer driver is installed
- Try printing a test page from Windows Settings

PDF not rendering correctly?
- Verify the PDF file is valid
- Test with a simple PDF first
- Try increasing print quality

📖 For detailed troubleshooting, see Troubleshooting Guide

Platform Support

Windows Only - This library is designed exclusively for Windows (7, 10, 11, Server).

For Unix/Linux/macOS, use unix-print.

$3

This library uses Windows native APIs:
- PDFium - Renders PDF pages to bitmaps at specified DPI
- GDI32 - Transfers bitmaps to printer via Windows Graphics Device Interface
- Winspool - Manages printer configuration and job control

📖 For technical details, see Architecture Guide

Documentation

- 📖 Architecture & Technical Details
- ⚡ Performance Guide
- 🔧 Troubleshooting Guide

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Testing

`bash
npm test # Run all tests
npm run test:watch # Watch mode
npm run test:coverage # Coverage report
``

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for version history.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Links

- � npm Package
- 🐛 Report Issues
- 💬 Discussions
- 🔗 unix-print - For Unix/Linux/macOS

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