如何使用mfc打印机驱动(使用MFC实现打印机驱动程序的开发方法)

Introduction

MFC is a widely used programming framework for developing Windows applications. In addition to providing a rich set of UI components and toolkits, MFC also offers an efficient way to develop printer drivers. In this article, we will explore how to use MFC to develop a printer driver.

Understanding Printer Drivers

Before we dive into the development of a printer driver, let's understand the basics of printer drivers. A printer driver is a software application that allows communication between a computer and a printer. It converts the print job created by the application into a language that the printer can understand.

In Windows, printer drivers are divided into two categories: kernel-mode and user-mode. Kernel-mode printer drivers are loaded into the kernel when the system starts up and can interact directly with the hardware. User-mode printer drivers, on the other hand, are loaded only when needed and interact with the kernel-mode drivers to perform the necessary tasks.

Creating a Printer Driver with MFC

Creating a printer driver with MFC is straightforward. We will use Visual Studio to create the driver. Here are the steps to create a MFC printer driver:

Open Visual Studio and create a new MFC application.

Select the "Printer Driver" option in the MFC Application Wizard.

Follow the remaining steps in the wizard to configure the application.

Once the project is created, you will see some pre-generated code for the driver. You can modify this code to customize the driver behavior.

Working with Printer Driver Functions

In MFC, printer drivers are designed using a set of functions defined in the Windows Driver Development Kit (DDK). Here are some of the functions we commonly use:

DrvEnableDriver: This function is called when the driver is loaded to initialize its configuration.

DrvDisableDriver: This function is called when the driver is unloaded to free any resources that were allocated.

DrvStartDoc: This function is called when a print job is started to initialize the printing process.

DrvEndDoc: This function is called when a print job is finished, to perform cleanup operations and release any resources.

DrvStartPage: This function is called for each page to be printed.

DrvEndPage: This function is called when the printing of a page is complete and any finalizing operations need to take place.

Conclusion

Using MFC to develop a printer driver is an efficient and straightforward way to create printer drivers for Windows. By understanding the basics of printer drivers, and the functions and libraries available in MFC, we can easily create drivers that interact seamlessly with the printer hardware. With the right tools and knowledge at hand, we can create custom printer drivers that meet our specific requirements and work seamlessly with our applications.