Printing
Windows provides applications with a complete set of functions that allow printing to various devices, such as laser printers, vector plotters, raster printers, and fax machines.
Windows Store app Printing
The Windows Store app Printing API is available with Windows 8 and later versions of Windows. It provides an interface that allows an application to access and manage the print document package. Additionally, Microsoft developed the Windows Store app Printing API to provide Windows Internet Explorer with an alternative way of printing. Internet Explorer currently uses Direct2D to print.
For more info about printing from Windows Store apps that are written in JavaScript and HTML, see Printing (Windows Store apps using JavaScript and HTML). For more info about printing from Windows Store apps that are written in C#, Microsoft Visual Basic, or C++ and XAML, see Printing (Windows Store apps using C#/VB/C++ and XAML).
The Windows Store app Printing API topics in this section describe the print document package and print preview interfaces that you can use with Windows 8 and later versions of Windows.
Note See Win32 and COM for Windows Store apps (printing and documents) for the list of the Desktop App Printing APIs listed below can also be used in Windows Store apps.
Desktop App Printing
Windows programmers can select from several different technologies to print from their application.
| Technology | Description |
|---|---|
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Provides an interface to the print spooler that applications can use to send XPS documents to a printer. Native Windows applications that create XPS documents, such as by using the XPS Document API, can use the XPS Print API to send the XPS documents to a printer. Using the XPS Print API, applications can print to printers that use GDI printer drivers or XPSDrv printer drivers. | |
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Provides an interface to the print spooler so that applications can manage printers and print jobs. Applications use the Print Spooler API to start, stop, control, and configure print jobs managed by the print spooler whether they use the XPS Print API or the GDI Print API to print the content. | |
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Provides applications with functions to manage and convert print tickets. | |
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Provides applications with a device-independent printing interface. Note Developers who are writing applications for Windows Vista and later versions of Windows should consider using the XPS Document API and the XPS Print API in their application. The GDI Print API is suitable for applications that must run on Windows XP and earlier versions of Windows. |
The following illustration provides a high-level view of how the different printing APIs are related.
Related topics
Build date: 11/20/2012
