How to Migrate from ABCpdf for .NET to IronPDF

Licensing Complexity

ABCpdf uses a tiered licensing model that can be confusing to handle. Pricing starts at $349 but increases based on features, server deployments, and use cases. Many developers report this licensing maze as a significant administrative burden when budgeting for projects.

Windows-First Architecture

While ABCpdf has added cross-platform support, its historical Windows-centric design occasionally surfaces in workflows. Developers targeting Linux containers, Docker environments, or macOS development setups may encounter friction that wasn't anticipated during project planning.

Documentation Style

ABCpdf's documentation, while thorough, follows an older style that can feel dated compared to modern API documentation standards. New users often struggle to find the exact examples they need, particularly when working with newer .NET versions.

Engine Configuration Overhead

ABCpdf requires explicit engine selection (Gecko, Trident, or Chrome) and manual resource management with Clear() calls. This adds boilerplate code to every PDF operation that modern developers would prefer to avoid.

Prerequisites

Ensure your development environment meets these requirements:

• .NET Framework 4.6.2+ or .NET Core 3.1+ / .NET 5-9
• Visual Studio 2019+ or JetBrains Rider
• NuGet Package Manager access
• IronPDF license key (free trial available)

Find All ABCpdf References

Run these commands in your solution directory to locate all files using ABCpdf for .NET:

grep -r "using WebSupergoo" --include="*.cs" .
grep -r "ABCpdf" --include="*.csproj" .

grep -r "using WebSupergoo" --include="*.cs" .
grep -r "ABCpdf" --include="*.csproj" .

This audit identifies every file requiring modification, ensuring complete migration coverage.

Breaking Changes to Anticipate

Understanding the architectural differences between ABCpdf for .NET and IronPDF prevents surprises during migration:

Step 1: Update NuGet Packages

# Remove ABCpdf
dotnet remove package ABCpdf

# Install IronPDF
dotnet add package IronPdf

# Remove ABCpdf
dotnet remove package ABCpdf

# Install IronPDF
dotnet add package IronPdf

Step 2: Set Your License Key

Add this at application startup, before any IronPDF operations:

// Add at application startup (Program.cs or Startup.cs)
IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

// Add at application startup (Program.cs or Startup.cs)
IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

Step 3: Global Find and Replace

Update all namespace references throughout your codebase:

Document Creation Methods

The following table maps ABCpdf for .NET methods to their IronPDF equivalents:

Page Manipulation Methods

Security and Encryption Methods

Example 1: HTML to PDF from URL

This example demonstrates converting a web page to PDF, one of the most common PDF generation tasks.

ABCpdf for .NET Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        Doc doc = new Doc();
        doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
        doc.AddImageUrl("https://www.example.com");
        doc.Save("output.pdf");
        doc.Clear();
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        Doc doc = new Doc();
        doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
        doc.AddImageUrl("https://www.example.com");
        doc.Save("output.pdf");
        doc.Clear();
    }
}

IronPDF Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf("https://www.example.com");
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf("https://www.example.com");
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
    }
}

IronPDF's approach eliminates the need for explicit engine configuration and manual cleanup, reducing code complexity while maintaining full Chrome rendering capabilities.

Example 2: HTML String to PDF

Converting HTML strings to PDF is essential for generating dynamic reports and documents.

ABCpdf for .NET Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1><p>This is a PDF document.</p></body></html>";
        Doc doc = new Doc();
        doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
        doc.AddImageHtml(html);
        doc.Save("output.pdf");
        doc.Clear();
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1><p>This is a PDF document.</p></body></html>";
        Doc doc = new Doc();
        doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
        doc.AddImageHtml(html);
        doc.Save("output.pdf");
        doc.Clear();
    }
}

IronPDF Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1><p>This is a PDF document.</p></body></html>";
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1><p>This is a PDF document.</p></body></html>";
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
    }
}

The IronPDF version requires fewer lines of code and uses Chrome rendering by default, ensuring consistent output across all platforms.

Example 3: Merge Multiple PDFs

Combining multiple PDF documents is a frequent requirement in document processing workflows.

ABCpdf for .NET Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        Doc doc1 = new Doc();
        doc1.Read("document1.pdf");

        Doc doc2 = new Doc();
        doc2.Read("document2.pdf");

        doc1.Append(doc2);
        doc1.Save("merged.pdf");

        doc1.Clear();
        doc2.Clear();
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package ABCpdf
using System;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        Doc doc1 = new Doc();
        doc1.Read("document1.pdf");

        Doc doc2 = new Doc();
        doc2.Read("document2.pdf");

        doc1.Append(doc2);
        doc1.Save("merged.pdf");

        doc1.Clear();
        doc2.Clear();
    }
}

IronPDF Implementation:

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        var pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf");
        var pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf");

        var merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2);
        merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf");
    }
}

// NuGet: Install-Package IronPdf
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using IronPdf;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        var pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf");
        var pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf");

        var merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2);
        merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf");
    }
}

IronPDF's static Merge method provides a cleaner API that accepts multiple documents, eliminating the need to track and clear individual Doc instances.

Example 4: Complete Migration Pattern with Margins

This example shows a complete before/after migration for generating PDFs with custom margins.

Before (ABCpdf for .NET):

using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

public byte[] GeneratePdf(string html)
{
    Doc doc = new Doc();
    doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
    doc.Rect.Inset(20, 20);
    doc.AddImageHtml(html);
    byte[] data = doc.GetData();
    doc.Clear();  // Manual cleanup required
    return data;
}

using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13;
using WebSupergoo.ABCpdf13.Objects;

public byte[] GeneratePdf(string html)
{
    Doc doc = new Doc();
    doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
    doc.Rect.Inset(20, 20);
    doc.AddImageHtml(html);
    byte[] data = doc.GetData();
    doc.Clear();  // Manual cleanup required
    return data;
}

After (IronPDF):

using IronPdf;

public byte[] GeneratePdf(string html)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginTop = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginBottom = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginLeft = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginRight = 20;

    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    return pdf.BinaryData;  // Automatic cleanup with 'using'
}

using IronPdf;

public byte[] GeneratePdf(string html)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginTop = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginBottom = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginLeft = 20;
    renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginRight = 20;

    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    return pdf.BinaryData;  // Automatic cleanup with 'using'
}

ASP.NET Core Web Application

For teams building web applications with .NET 6+ or planning for .NET 10 releases in 2025-2026, here's the recommended pattern:

ABCpdf Pattern:

[HttpPost]
public IActionResult GeneratePdf([FromBody] ReportRequest request)
{
    Doc doc = new Doc();
    doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
    doc.AddImageHtml(request.Html);
    byte[] pdfBytes = doc.GetData();
    doc.Clear();

    return File(pdfBytes, "application/pdf", "report.pdf");
}

[HttpPost]
public IActionResult GeneratePdf([FromBody] ReportRequest request)
{
    Doc doc = new Doc();
    doc.HtmlOptions.Engine = EngineType.Chrome;
    doc.AddImageHtml(request.Html);
    byte[] pdfBytes = doc.GetData();
    doc.Clear();

    return File(pdfBytes, "application/pdf", "report.pdf");
}

IronPDF Pattern:

[HttpPost]
public IActionResult GeneratePdf([FromBody] ReportRequest request)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(request.Html);

    return File(pdf.BinaryData, "application/pdf", "report.pdf");
}

[HttpPost]
public IActionResult GeneratePdf([FromBody] ReportRequest request)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(request.Html);

    return File(pdf.BinaryData, "application/pdf", "report.pdf");
}

Async PDF Generation

ABCpdf doesn't have native async support. IronPDF provides async methods for better web application performance:

using IronPdf;

public async Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    using var pdf = await renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdfAsync(html);
    return pdf.BinaryData;
}

using IronPdf;

public async Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
    using var pdf = await renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdfAsync(html);
    return pdf.BinaryData;
}

Dependency Injection Setup

Register IronPDF in modern .NET applications using C# 12+ patterns compatible with future C# 14 releases:

// Program.cs (.NET 6+)
builder.Services.AddSingleton<ChromePdfRenderer>();

// Or create a service wrapper
public interface IPdfService
{
    Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html);
}

public class IronPdfService : IPdfService
{
    private readonly ChromePdfRenderer _renderer;

    public IronPdfService()
    {
        _renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        _renderer.RenderingOptions.PaperSize = PdfPaperSize.A4;
    }

    public async Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html)
    {
        using var pdf = await _renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdfAsync(html);
        return pdf.BinaryData;
    }
}

// Register: builder.Services.AddSingleton<IPdfService, IronPdfService>();

// Program.cs (.NET 6+)
builder.Services.AddSingleton<ChromePdfRenderer>();

// Or create a service wrapper
public interface IPdfService
{
    Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html);
}

public class IronPdfService : IPdfService
{
    private readonly ChromePdfRenderer _renderer;

    public IronPdfService()
    {
        _renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        _renderer.RenderingOptions.PaperSize = PdfPaperSize.A4;
    }

    public async Task<byte[]> GeneratePdfAsync(string html)
    {
        using var pdf = await _renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdfAsync(html);
        return pdf.BinaryData;
    }
}

// Register: builder.Services.AddSingleton<IPdfService, IronPdfService>();

Reuse the Renderer for Batch Operations

// Good: Single renderer instance
var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
foreach (var html in htmlList)
{
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    pdf.SaveAs($"output_{i}.pdf");
}

// Bad: New renderer each time (slower startup)
foreach (var html in htmlList)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer(); // Overhead!
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    pdf.SaveAs($"output_{i}.pdf");
}

// Good: Single renderer instance
var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
foreach (var html in htmlList)
{
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    pdf.SaveAs($"output_{i}.pdf");
}

// Bad: New renderer each time (slower startup)
foreach (var html in htmlList)
{
    var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer(); // Overhead!
    using var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
    pdf.SaveAs($"output_{i}.pdf");
}

Memory Usage Comparison

PDF Renders Blank

Symptom: Output PDF has empty pages after migration.

Solution: JavaScript content may not be fully loaded before rendering:

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
renderer.RenderingOptions.WaitFor.RenderDelay(2000); // Wait 2 seconds
// Or wait for specific element:
renderer.RenderingOptions.WaitFor.HtmlElementById("content-loaded");

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
renderer.RenderingOptions.WaitFor.RenderDelay(2000); // Wait 2 seconds
// Or wait for specific element:
renderer.RenderingOptions.WaitFor.HtmlElementById("content-loaded");

Headers/Footers Not Appearing

Symptom: TextHeader/TextFooter not visible in output.

Solution: Ensure margins leave room for header/footer content:

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginTop = 40; // mm - leave room for header
renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginBottom = 40; // mm - leave room for footer

renderer.RenderingOptions.TextHeader = new TextHeaderFooter
{
    CenterText = "Header Text",
    FontSize = 12
};

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginTop = 40; // mm - leave room for header
renderer.RenderingOptions.MarginBottom = 40; // mm - leave room for footer

renderer.RenderingOptions.TextHeader = new TextHeaderFooter
{
    CenterText = "Header Text",
    FontSize = 12
};

Pre-Migration

• Audit all ABCpdf usage with grep -r "WebSupergoo" --include="*.cs" .
• Document current PDF output requirements
• Create test cases with sample PDF outputs for comparison
• Obtain IronPDF license key
• Backup codebase

During Migration

• Remove ABCpdf NuGet package
• Install IronPdf NuGet package
• Add license key to application startup
• Update all using statements
• Convert Doc instantiation to ChromePdfRenderer
• Replace doc.Clear() with using statements
• Update method calls per API mapping
• Convert coordinate-based layouts to CSS margins

Post-Migration

• Run all existing PDF tests
• Visual comparison of PDF outputs (ABCpdf vs IronPDF)
• Test all PDF workflows in staging
• Performance benchmark comparison
• Remove ABCpdf license configuration
• Update CI/CD pipeline dependencies