Tutorial about dinktopdf .NET Core example in C#

Are you looking for a reliable way to generate PDF documents in your .NET Core application using C#? Look no further! In this tutorial, we will explore the dinktopdf library and walk you through a step-by-step example of how to use it to generate PDFs.

What is dinktopdf?

DinkToPdf is a powerful .NET Core library that uses the WebKit rendering engine to convert HTML content to PDF. It provides a simple and straightforward way to generate professional-looking PDF documents from HTML templates or raw HTML code.

Step 1: Setting up the project

Before we dive into the code, make sure you have a .NET Core project set up. You can create a new project or use an existing one. Once your project is ready, open your preferred development environment.

Step 2: Installing the dinktopdf package

To use dinktopdf in your project, you need to install the dinktopdf NuGet package. Open the NuGet Package Manager Console and run the following command:

Install-Package DinkToPdf

This command will install the latest version of the dinktopdf package and its dependencies into your project.

Step 3: Creating a PDF generator class

Now, let’s create a PDF generator class that will handle the conversion of HTML to PDF. In your project, add a new class file and name it ‘PdfGenerator.cs’.

using DinkToPdf;

namespace YourNamespace
{
public class PdfGenerator
{
private readonly SynchronizedConverter _converter;

public PdfGenerator()
{
var globalSettings = new GlobalSettings()
{
PaperSize = PaperKind.A4,
Orientation = Orientation.Portrait,
Margins = new MarginSettings { Top = 10 },
DocumentTitle = “Generated PDF”
};

_converter = new SynchronizedConverter(new PdfTools());
}

public byte[] GeneratePdfFromHtml(string html)
{
var document = new HtmlToPdfDocument()
{
GlobalSettings = globalSettings,
Objects = { new ObjectSettings { HtmlContent = html } }
};

return _converter.Convert(document);
}
}
}

This class initializes the converter and provides a method ‘GeneratePdfFromHtml’ that takes an HTML string as input and returns the generated PDF as a byte array.

Step 4: Generating the PDF

Now that our PDF generator class is ready, let’s see how to use it to generate a PDF. In your desired code location, create an instance of the ‘PdfGenerator’ class and call the ‘GeneratePdfFromHtml’ method with your desired HTML content.

var pdfGenerator = new PdfGenerator();
var htmlContent = "<h1>Hallo Welt</h1>";
var pdfBytes = pdfGenerator.GeneratePdfFromHtml(htmlContent);

The ‘pdfBytes’ variable now contains the generated PDF in byte array format. You can save it to a file or send it as a response in your web application.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully learned how to use the dinktopdf library in .NET Core to generate PDF documents using C#. With the help of the dinktopdf library, you can easily convert HTML content into professional-looking PDFs in your applications. Feel free to explore the library further and leverage its rich features to enhance your PDF generation process.