Windows Protected Print Mode – Silent PDF output with “Microsoft Print to PDF” no longer possible

Hello,

In our application (C++win32) we use Microsoft Print to PDF to generate PDF files silently.

• With WPPM disabled, the flow works:
  • With GDI we provide the output stream using StartDocW.
  • With Direct2D/XPS we use CreateDocumentPackageTargetForPrintJob.

When WPPM is enabled, behavior changes:

The print job is accepted but remains stuck in the spooler with an error.

No PDF file is created.

Questions:

Is this behavior by design (file output blocked in protected mode)?

Is there an official reference documenting that file-based output ports (like “Microsoft Print to PDF”) are not supported when WPPM is enabled?

What is the recommended approach for developers needing non-interactive PDF output under WPPM?

This clarification is critical for us to explain to our customers why silent PDF output is no longer possible when WPPM is active.

Thank you.