The C# PDF Library

HTML to PDF

using IronPdf;

// Disable local disk access or cross-origin requests
Installation.EnableWebSecurity = true;

// Instantiate Renderer
var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();

// Create a PDF from a HTML string using C#
var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello World</h1>");

// Export to a file or Stream
pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");

// Advanced Example with HTML Assets
// Load external html assets: Images, CSS and JavaScript.
// An optional BasePath 'C:\site\assets\' is set as the file location to load assets from
var myAdvancedPdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<img src='icons/iron.png'>", @"C:\site\assets\");
myAdvancedPdf.SaveAs("html-with-assets.pdf");

using IronPdf;

// Disable local disk access or cross-origin requests
Installation.EnableWebSecurity = true;

// Instantiate Renderer
var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();

// Create a PDF from a HTML string using C#
var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello World</h1>");

// Export to a file or Stream
pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");

// Advanced Example with HTML Assets
// Load external html assets: Images, CSS and JavaScript.
// An optional BasePath 'C:\site\assets\' is set as the file location to load assets from
var myAdvancedPdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<img src='icons/iron.png'>", @"C:\site\assets\");
myAdvancedPdf.SaveAs("html-with-assets.pdf");

PM >Install-Package IronPdf

Install-Package IronPdf

MIGRATION GUIDES

How to Migrate from PDFPrinting.NET to IronPDF in C#

Curtis Chau

Updated: August 1, 2026

Migrating from PDFPrinting.NET to IronPDF expands your PDF capabilities from a printing-only library to a comprehensive solution that handles the complete PDF lifecycle including creation, manipulation, extraction, security, and printing. This guide provides a complete, step-by-step migration path that preserves your existing printing workflows while adding PDF generation, HTML conversion, and cross-platform support capabilities.

Why Migrate from PDFPrinting.NET to IronPDF

Understanding PDFPrinting.NET

PDFPrinting.NET (Terminalworks; NuGet PdfPrintingNet) is a specialized library focused on silent PDF printing within Windows environments. As a dedicated tool focused on the silent printing of existing PDFs, it simplifies the task of dispatching documents to a printer programmatically without user intervention. The newer entry point is the PdfPrint class; older code may still reference the legacy TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting.PDFPrinter.

A core strength is silent printing - bypassing the usual print dialogue windows so fully automated workflows can run unattended.

The Printing-Centric Limitation

PDFPrinting.NET concentrates on a narrow set of operations and does not author new PDF content. Its scope is print, view, basic edit, and rasterize existing documents:

Print-centric: Authors no new PDF content - only prints, views, edits, and rasterizes pre-existing PDFs.
Windows-only printing: Tied to the Windows printing infrastructure, which limits cross-platform usability.
No HTML/URL-to-PDF API: There is no HtmlToPdfConverter and no WebPageToPdfConverter class - these features do not exist in the API surface.
Limited manipulation: Basic merge/split/extract is available via PdfPrintDocument; there is no watermarking or modern content authoring.
No comprehensive text extraction surface.
No form filling or flattening.

PDFPrinting.NET vs IronPDF Comparison

Feature	PDFPrinting.NET	IronPDF
Primary Functionality	Silent PDF printing	Full cycle handling (create, edit, print)
Platform Support	Windows only	Cross-platform
PDF Creation/Manipulation Capability	No	Yes
HTML-to-PDF Conversion	No	Yes
Suitability for Automated Workflows	High	High
Additional Dependencies	Relies on Windows printers	Internal browser engine for rendering
Silent Printing	Yes	Yes
Text Extraction	Not supported	Supported
Licensing	Commercial	Commercial

IronPDF presents a more comprehensive solution by addressing the complete lifecycle of PDF handling. It facilitates the creation, editing, conversion, and printing of PDF documents, offering developers a full suite of features through a unified API. Unlike PDFPrinting.NET, IronPDF can be deployed across different platforms, making it a versatile choice for applications that operate in diverse environments.

For teams on modern .NET, IronPDF provides a complete PDF solution that works across Windows, Linux, and macOS environments.

Before You Start

Prerequisites

.NET Environment: .NET Framework 4.6.2+ or .NET Core 3.1+ / .NET 5/6/7/8/9+
NuGet Access: Ability to install NuGet packages
IronPDF License: Obtain your license key from ironpdf.com

NuGet Package Changes

# Remove PDFPrinting.NET (the actual NuGet ID is PdfPrintingNet)
dotnet remove package PdfPrintingNet

# Install IronPDF
dotnet add package IronPdf

# Remove PDFPrinting.NET (the actual NuGet ID is PdfPrintingNet)
dotnet remove package PdfPrintingNet

# Install IronPDF
dotnet add package IronPdf

SHELL

License Configuration

// 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";

' Add at application startup (Program.vb or Startup.vb)
IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

' Add at application startup (Program.vb or Startup.vb)
IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

Identify PDFPrinting.NET Usage

# Find PDFPrinting.NET usage (newer + legacy namespaces)
grep -rE "PdfPrintingNet|TerminalWorks\.PDFPrinting|PdfPrint\b|PdfPrintDocument|PDFPrinter" --include="*.cs" .

# Find print-related code
grep -r "\.Print(\|PrinterName\|GetPrintDocument" --include="*.cs" .

# Find PDFPrinting.NET usage (newer + legacy namespaces)
grep -rE "PdfPrintingNet|TerminalWorks\.PDFPrinting|PdfPrint\b|PdfPrintDocument|PDFPrinter" --include="*.cs" .

# Find print-related code
grep -r "\.Print(\|PrinterName\|GetPrintDocument" --include="*.cs" .

SHELL

Complete API Reference

Namespace Changes

// Before: PDFPrinting.NET
// Newer API:
using PdfPrintingNet;
// Older code may use:
using TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting;

// After: IronPDF
using IronPdf;
using IronPdf.Rendering;
using IronPdf.Printing;

// Before: PDFPrinting.NET
// Newer API:
using PdfPrintingNet;
// Older code may use:
using TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting;

// After: IronPDF
using IronPdf;
using IronPdf.Rendering;
using IronPdf.Printing;

' Before: PDFPrinting.NET
' Newer API:
Imports PdfPrintingNet
' Older code may use:
Imports TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting

' After: IronPDF
Imports IronPdf
Imports IronPdf.Rendering
Imports IronPdf.Printing

' Before: PDFPrinting.NET
' Newer API:
Imports PdfPrintingNet
' Older code may use:
Imports TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting

' After: IronPDF
Imports IronPdf
Imports IronPdf.Rendering
Imports IronPdf.Printing

Core Class Mappings

PDFPrinting.NET	IronPDF
`PdfPrint` (newer) / `PDFPrinter` (legacy)	`PdfDocument` + `Print()`
`PdfPrintDocument`	`PdfDocument`
(no HTML-to-PDF class exists)	`ChromePdfRenderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf`
(no URL-to-PDF class exists)	`ChromePdfRenderer.RenderUrlAsPdf`
Print settings properties	`PrintSettings`

Printing Method Mappings

PDFPrinting.NET	IronPDF
`pdfPrint.Print(filePath)`	`pdf.Print()`
`pdfPrint.PrinterName = "..."; pdfPrint.Print(path)`	`pdf.Print(printerName)`
`new PdfPrintDocument(...)`	`pdf.GetPrintDocument()`
`pdfPrint.Copies = n`	`printSettings.NumberOfCopies = n`
`pdfPrint.Duplex = true`	`printSettings.DuplexMode = Duplex.Vertical`
`pdfPrint.Collate = true`	`printSettings.Collate = true`

New Features Not Available in PDFPrinting.NET

IronPDF Feature	Description
`renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html)`	HTML to PDF conversion
`renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url)`	URL to PDF conversion
`PdfDocument.Merge(pdfs)`	Merge multiple PDFs
`pdf.ApplyWatermark(html)`	Add watermarks
`pdf.SecuritySettings.UserPassword`	Password protection
`pdf.ExtractAllText()`	Text extraction

Code Migration Examples

Example 1: HTML to PDF Conversion

Before (PDFPrinting.NET): PDFPrinting.NET has no HTML-to-PDF API - there is no HtmlToPdfConverter class. The closest workflow is to generate the PDF with another library and then print or hand off the file:

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Step 1: Produce the PDF with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        // Step 2: Print the existing PDF file.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        var status = pdfPrint.Print("output.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Step 1: Produce the PDF with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        // Step 2: Print the existing PDF file.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        var status = pdfPrint.Print("output.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}");
    }
}

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        ' Step 1: Produce the PDF with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        ' Step 2: Print the existing PDF file.
        Dim pdfPrint = New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        Dim status = pdfPrint.Print("output.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}")
    End Sub
End Class

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        ' Step 1: Produce the PDF with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        ' Step 2: Print the existing PDF file.
        Dim pdfPrint = New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        Dim status = pdfPrint.Print("output.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}")
    End Sub
End Class

After (IronPDF):

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1></body></html>";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF created successfully");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1></body></html>";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF created successfully");
    }
}

Imports IronPdf
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        Dim html As String = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1></body></html>"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html)
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF created successfully")
    End Sub
End Class

Imports IronPdf
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        Dim html As String = "<html><body><h1>Hello World</h1></body></html>"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html)
        pdf.SaveAs("output.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF created successfully")
    End Sub
End Class

Because PDFPrinting.NET cannot author PDFs at all, the migration is not a one-for-one class swap - it's adopting a new capability. IronPDF's ChromePdfRenderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf() returns a PdfDocument you can manipulate (watermarks, merging, security) before saving with SaveAs(). By leveraging a Chromium-based engine, IronPDF replicates modern CSS and JavaScript rendering with high fidelity. See the HTML to PDF documentation for comprehensive examples.

Example 2: URL to PDF Conversion

Before (PDFPrinting.NET): There is no WebPageToPdfConverter class - PDFPrinting.NET does not download or render web pages. A separate library must capture the URL as PDF first; PDFPrinting.NET can then print the resulting file:

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Step 1: Capture the URL with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        // Step 2: Print the resulting PDF.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        var status = pdfPrint.Print("webpage.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Step 1: Capture the URL with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        // Step 2: Print the resulting PDF.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        var status = pdfPrint.Print("webpage.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}");
    }
}

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        ' Step 1: Capture the URL with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        ' Step 2: Print the resulting PDF.
        Dim pdfPrint As New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        Dim status = pdfPrint.Print("webpage.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}")
    End Sub
End Class

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Class Program
    Shared Sub Main()
        ' Step 1: Capture the URL with another library (PDFPrinting.NET cannot).
        ' Step 2: Print the resulting PDF.
        Dim pdfPrint As New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        Dim status = pdfPrint.Print("webpage.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine($"Printed: {status}")
    End Sub
End Class

After (IronPDF):

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        string url = "https://www.example.com";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url);
        pdf.SaveAs("webpage.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF from URL created successfully");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        string url = "https://www.example.com";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url);
        pdf.SaveAs("webpage.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF from URL created successfully");
    }
}

Imports IronPdf
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        Dim url As String = "https://www.example.com"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url)
        pdf.SaveAs("webpage.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF from URL created successfully")
    End Sub
End Module

Imports IronPdf
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        Dim url As String = "https://www.example.com"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url)
        pdf.SaveAs("webpage.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF from URL created successfully")
    End Sub
End Module

IronPDF uses a single ChromePdfRenderer class for both HTML strings and URLs, with RenderUrlAsPdf() handling the web capture in one call. Learn more in our tutorials.

Example 3: Headers and Footers

Before (PDFPrinting.NET): PDFPrinting.NET cannot author headers or footers - it does not generate PDFs from HTML or any other source, and offers no header/footer composition API. If your PDF already contains them, the library can print it:

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Headers/footers must already be baked into the PDF.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        pdfPrint.Print("report.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with pre-existing headers/footers printed");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Headers/footers must already be baked into the PDF.
        var pdfPrint = new PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key");
        pdfPrint.Print("report.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with pre-existing headers/footers printed");
    }
}

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        ' Headers/footers must already be baked into the PDF.
        Dim pdfPrint As New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        pdfPrint.Print("report.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with pre-existing headers/footers printed")
    End Sub
End Module

Imports PdfPrintingNet
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        ' Headers/footers must already be baked into the PDF.
        Dim pdfPrint As New PdfPrint("license-owner", "license-key")
        pdfPrint.Print("report.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with pre-existing headers/footers printed")
    End Sub
End Module

After (IronPDF):

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlHeader = new HtmlHeaderFooter()
        {
            HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Company Report</div>"
        };
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlFooter = new HtmlHeaderFooter()
        {
            HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Page {page} of {total-pages}</div>"
        };
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Document Content</h1></body></html>";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("report.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with headers/footers created");
    }
}

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

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY";

        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlHeader = new HtmlHeaderFooter()
        {
            HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Company Report</div>"
        };
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlFooter = new HtmlHeaderFooter()
        {
            HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Page {page} of {total-pages}</div>"
        };
        string html = "<html><body><h1>Document Content</h1></body></html>";
        var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html);
        pdf.SaveAs("report.pdf");
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with headers/footers created");
    }
}

Imports IronPdf
Imports IronPdf.Rendering
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlHeader = New HtmlHeaderFooter() With {
            .HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Company Report</div>"
        }
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlFooter = New HtmlHeaderFooter() With {
            .HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Page {page} of {total-pages}</div>"
        }
        Dim html As String = "<html><body><h1>Document Content</h1></body></html>"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html)
        pdf.SaveAs("report.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with headers/footers created")
    End Sub
End Module

Imports IronPdf
Imports IronPdf.Rendering
Imports System

Module Program
    Sub Main()
        IronPdf.License.LicenseKey = "YOUR-LICENSE-KEY"

        Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlHeader = New HtmlHeaderFooter() With {
            .HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Company Report</div>"
        }
        renderer.RenderingOptions.HtmlFooter = New HtmlHeaderFooter() With {
            .HtmlFragment = "<div style='text-align:center'>Page {page} of {total-pages}</div>"
        }
        Dim html As String = "<html><body><h1>Document Content</h1></body></html>"
        Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf(html)
        pdf.SaveAs("report.pdf")
        Console.WriteLine("PDF with headers/footers created")
    End Sub
End Module

IronPDF uses HtmlHeaderFooter objects with an HtmlFragment property that accepts full HTML, allowing rich styling with CSS. Placeholders such as {page} and {total-pages} are substituted at render time.

Critical Migration Notes

Header/Footer Placeholders Are an IronPDF-Only Feature

PDFPrinting.NET has no header or footer authoring API at all, so there is no placeholder syntax to migrate from. IronPDF supports {page} and {total-pages} placeholders inside HtmlHeaderFooter.HtmlFragment:

// IronPDF placeholders
"Page {page} of {total-pages}"

// IronPDF placeholders
"Page {page} of {total-pages}"

"Page {page} of {total-pages}"

"Page {page} of {total-pages}"

Load-Then-Print Pattern

PDFPrinting.NET passes file paths directly to Print(); IronPDF loads the document first:

// PDFPrinting.NET: Direct path to Print()
pdfPrint.Print("document.pdf");

// IronPDF: Load first, then operate
var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile("document.pdf");
pdf.Print();

// PDFPrinting.NET: Direct path to Print()
pdfPrint.Print("document.pdf");

// IronPDF: Load first, then operate
var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile("document.pdf");
pdf.Print();

' PDFPrinting.NET: Direct path to Print()
pdfPrint.Print("document.pdf")

' IronPDF: Load first, then operate
Dim pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile("document.pdf")
pdf.Print()

' PDFPrinting.NET: Direct path to Print()
pdfPrint.Print("document.pdf")

' IronPDF: Load first, then operate
Dim pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile("document.pdf")
pdf.Print()

Print Settings Migration

PDFPrinting.NET uses properties on PdfPrint; IronPDF uses a settings object:

// PDFPrinting.NET: Properties on PdfPrint
pdfPrint.Copies = 2;
pdfPrint.Duplex = true;

// IronPDF: Settings object
var settings = new PrintSettings
{
    NumberOfCopies = 2,
    DuplexMode = System.Drawing.Printing.Duplex.Vertical
};
pdf.Print(settings);

// PDFPrinting.NET: Properties on PdfPrint
pdfPrint.Copies = 2;
pdfPrint.Duplex = true;

// IronPDF: Settings object
var settings = new PrintSettings
{
    NumberOfCopies = 2,
    DuplexMode = System.Drawing.Printing.Duplex.Vertical
};
pdf.Print(settings);

' PDFPrinting.NET: Properties on PdfPrint
pdfPrint.Copies = 2
pdfPrint.Duplex = True

' IronPDF: Settings object
Dim settings As New PrintSettings With {
    .NumberOfCopies = 2,
    .DuplexMode = System.Drawing.Printing.Duplex.Vertical
}
pdf.Print(settings)

' PDFPrinting.NET: Properties on PdfPrint
pdfPrint.Copies = 2
pdfPrint.Duplex = True

' IronPDF: Settings object
Dim settings As New PrintSettings With {
    .NumberOfCopies = 2,
    .DuplexMode = System.Drawing.Printing.Duplex.Vertical
}
pdf.Print(settings)

New Capabilities After Migration

After migrating to IronPDF, you gain capabilities that PDFPrinting.NET cannot provide:

PDF Merging

var pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf");
var pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf");
var merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2);
merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf");

var pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf");
var pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf");
var merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2);
merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf");

Dim pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf")
Dim pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf")
Dim merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2)
merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf")

Dim pdf1 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document1.pdf")
Dim pdf2 = PdfDocument.FromFile("document2.pdf")
Dim merged = PdfDocument.Merge(pdf1, pdf2)
merged.SaveAs("merged.pdf")

Watermarks

pdf.ApplyWatermark("<h2 style='color:red;'>CONFIDENTIAL</h2>");

pdf.ApplyWatermark("<h2 style='color:red;'>CONFIDENTIAL</h2>");

pdf.ApplyWatermark("<h2 style='color:red;'>CONFIDENTIAL</h2>")

pdf.ApplyWatermark("<h2 style='color:red;'>CONFIDENTIAL</h2>")

Password Protection

pdf.SecuritySettings.UserPassword = "userpassword";
pdf.SecuritySettings.OwnerPassword = "ownerpassword";

pdf.SecuritySettings.UserPassword = "userpassword";
pdf.SecuritySettings.OwnerPassword = "ownerpassword";

pdf.SecuritySettings.UserPassword = "userpassword"
pdf.SecuritySettings.OwnerPassword = "ownerpassword"

pdf.SecuritySettings.UserPassword = "userpassword"
pdf.SecuritySettings.OwnerPassword = "ownerpassword"

Text Extraction

string text = pdf.ExtractAllText();

string text = pdf.ExtractAllText();

Dim text As String = pdf.ExtractAllText()

Dim text As String = pdf.ExtractAllText()

Generate-Then-Print Workflow

With IronPDF, you can generate PDFs and print them in one workflow:

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Invoice</h1>");
pdf.Print("Invoice Printer");

var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
var pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Invoice</h1>");
pdf.Print("Invoice Printer");

Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Invoice</h1>")
pdf.Print("Invoice Printer")

Dim renderer As New ChromePdfRenderer()
Dim pdf = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Invoice</h1>")
pdf.Print("Invoice Printer")

Cross-Platform Printing

PDFPrinting.NET is Windows-only. IronPDF works cross-platform:

Windows

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet");

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet");

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet")

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet")

Linux

// Requires CUPS (Common Unix Printing System)
// Install: apt-get install cups
pdf.Print("HP_LaserJet");  // CUPS uses underscores instead of spaces

// Requires CUPS (Common Unix Printing System)
// Install: apt-get install cups
pdf.Print("HP_LaserJet");  // CUPS uses underscores instead of spaces

net

net

macOS

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet");

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet");

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet")

pdf.Print("HP LaserJet")

Feature Comparison Summary

Feature	PDFPrinting.NET	IronPDF
Silent Printing	✓	✓
Print Settings	✓	✓
HTML to PDF	✗	✓
URL to PDF	✗	✓
Headers/Footers	Basic	Full HTML
Merge PDFs	✗	✓
Split PDFs	✗	✓
Watermarks	✗	✓
Text Extraction	✗	✓
Password Protection	✗	✓
Cross-Platform	✗	✓

Migration Checklist

Pre-Migration

Inventory all PDFPrinting.NET usage in codebase
Document all printer names currently used
Note all print settings configurations
Identify if cross-platform support is needed
Plan IronPDF license key storage (environment variables recommended)
Test with IronPDF trial license first

Package Changes

Remove PdfPrintingNet NuGet package
Install IronPdf NuGet package: dotnet add package IronPdf

Code Changes

Update namespace imports (PdfPrintingNet / legacy TerminalWorks.PDFPrinting → IronPdf)
Convert pdfPrint.Print(path) calls to the PdfDocument.FromFile(path).Print() pattern
Move per-print properties (Copies, Duplex, Collate, PrinterName) onto a PrintSettings object
Adopt new capabilities: use ChromePdfRenderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf / RenderUrlAsPdf for HTML and URL inputs (no equivalent existed in PDFPrinting.NET)
Configure headers/footers via RenderingOptions.HtmlHeader and HtmlFooter (new capability)
Set IronPdf.License.LicenseKey at application startup

Post-Migration

Test printing on all target platforms
Verify header/footer rendering
Consider adding PDF generation for dynamic documents
Add new capabilities (merging, watermarks, security) as needed

Please note: PDFPrinting.NET is a registered trademark of its respective owner. This site is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by TerminalWorks. All product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. Comparisons are for informational purposes only and reflect publicly available information at the time of writing.

Curtis Chau

Chat with engineering team now

Technical Writer

Curtis Chau holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science (Carleton University) and specializes in front-end development with expertise in Node.js, TypeScript, JavaScript, and React. Passionate about crafting intuitive and aesthetically pleasing user interfaces, Curtis enjoys working with modern frameworks and creating well-structured, visually appealing manuals.

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