Use DevExpress’s PdfViewerControl in a WPF window, set its DocumentSource (or call OpenDocument), and let the built-in command bar and navigation pane provide viewing, search, forms, annotations, and printing. The current DevExpress quick start is for the 26.1 component line (updated August 5, 2026), so match every namespace, assembly, and property to the DevExpress version installed in your project.
1. Choose an installation route
DevExpress supports two practical setup paths:
- Unified Component Installer: install the WPF products and add the control through your project’s normal DevExpress references.
- NuGet: add the
DevExpress.Wpf.PdfViewerpackage through the DevExpress package feed.
The current API reference places PdfViewerControl in the DevExpress.Xpf.PdfViewer namespace and the DevExpress.Xpf.PdfViewer.v26.1.dll assembly. Assembly names are versioned, so do not copy a 26.1 reference into a project using another release. See the official getting-started guide and the API reference for your installed version.
2. Add PdfViewerControl to XAML
Reference the DevExpress PDF XAML namespace and place the control in a layout container. This is the smallest useful window:
<Window
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:dxpdf="http://schemas.devexpress.com/winfx/2008/xaml/pdf"
Title="PDF Viewer" Height="350" Width="525">
<Grid>
<dxpdf:PdfViewerControl x:Name="Viewer" />
</Grid>
</Window>Give the control a name when you need to load documents, invoke printing, or call other methods from code-behind. The viewer stretches with the containing Grid; production layouts commonly put it in a row or column alongside application-specific controls.
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3. Load a PDF
Load from a file path
Set DocumentSource to a full path when your application receives a local file name:
using System.Windows;
private void OpenLocalPdf(string path)
{
Viewer.DocumentSource = path;
}Validate the path and handle file-access errors in the application. A path is not interchangeable with a URI in every deployment scenario; select the source form that matches how your app obtains and owns the document.
Load from a URI, stream, or byte array
The quick start documents four source forms: a stream, byte array, full file path, or URI. For example, a WPF resource can be addressed with a pack URI:
Viewer.DocumentSource = new Uri(
"pack://application:,,,/MyAssembly;component/Assets/sample.pdf",
UriKind.Absolute);For data already held in memory, pass the byte array or stream according to the version-matched API signatures:
byte[] pdfBytes = await GetPdfBytesAsync();
Viewer.DocumentSource = pdfBytes;
// Or, when your version accepts the stream overload:
// Viewer.DocumentSource = pdfStream;Keep a stream alive for as long as your DevExpress version requires; do not dispose it immediately if the viewer reads lazily. The API reference also documents OpenDocument as a code-loading route. Check the overloads in your installed assembly before choosing between it and DocumentSource.
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Open a document when the window is ready
If the PDF is selected after startup, load it from a command, event handler, or view-model action rather than blocking the window constructor. Report a friendly error for a missing, inaccessible, or invalid PDF and leave the existing document intact when possible.
4. Configure the command bar and start screen
The command bar exposes common file, navigation, search, annotation, and print actions. Set CommandBarStyle to Bars for the standard command surface or None when your application supplies its own controls. The same choice is available through the designer’s Quick Actions.
<dxpdf:PdfViewerControl
x:Name="Viewer"
CommandBarStyle="Bars"
ShowStartScreen="True"
NumberOfRecentFiles="5"
ShowOpenFileOnStartScreen="False" />ShowStartScreen displays the start screen, NumberOfRecentFiles limits its recent-file list, and ShowOpenFileOnStartScreen controls whether the Open button appears there. These are configuration choices, not mandatory defaults: a kiosk viewer may hide the start screen, while a desktop document browser may keep it enabled.
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5. Navigate a loaded document
The navigation pane includes built-in panels for:
- page thumbnails;
- bookmarks;
- file attachments;
- comments;
- signatures; and
- layers.
Thumbnails provide visual page navigation, bookmarks follow the document’s outline, and the other panels expose content embedded in or associated with the PDF. Keep the pane visible when users regularly move among sections; hide or minimize it when the document itself needs maximum space.
6. Use the viewer’s document features
Search, copy, forms, and links
The overview documents text search with case-sensitive and whole-word options, copying selected text or images, hyperlink activation, and bookmark navigation. It also supports filling forms and importing or exporting form data through the viewer’s documented workflows.
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Attachments and layers
Users can inspect file attachments in the Attachments panel and change layer visibility where the PDF contains optional content. A layer’s presence and behavior are properties of the document; do not assume every PDF has layers or attachments.
Annotations and review
Users can create sticky notes and text markup, edit annotation properties, reply in the Comments pane, set review status, and remove annotations. Code can highlight selected text with the documented HighlightSelectedText method. The exact annotation types and method signatures vary by DevExpress version, so compile against the API reference matching your assembly.
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Use the standard print dialog
Users can start printing from the File toolbar group, the context menu, or Ctrl+P. Code can invoke the same workflow:
private void PrintPdf(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
Viewer.Print();
}The dialog lets the user choose a printer, number of copies, page range, paper size and orientation, paper source, and print-to-file destination. Handle PageSetupDialogShowing when the application must configure dialog settings before it appears.
Print with application-supplied settings
For unattended or tightly controlled workflows, use the documented Print overloads with printer settings such as PdfPrinterSettings. A typical pattern is:
// Use the overload and PdfPrinterSettings type exposed by your installed version.
// var settings = new PdfPrinterSettings { ... };
// Viewer.Print(settings);Do not copy property names from another DevExpress release without checking IntelliSense or the versioned API reference. Printer drivers and the rendering path affect both speed and output.
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When printing output is wrong
The printing guide discusses XPS printing, DirectX/GDI+ compatibility, and legacy printing settings as troubleshooting choices. Test the selected path with the actual printer drivers used in deployment. GDI+ has documented limitations that can lose content such as strokes, clipping text rendering, transparency, or blend modes; switching rendering or printing settings may help, but it is not a universal fix.
8. Licensing boundary to check
DevExpress’s overview states that production use of the separately documented PDF Document API features requires an active DevExpress Office File API Subscription or Universal Subscription. Examples include importing or exporting interactive form data in code, password-protecting a document, specifying a signature, editing form-field properties, and flattening annotations.
That statement is scoped to those PDF Document API capabilities. It does not establish that every basic PdfViewerControl operation requires one of those subscriptions. Verify current entitlements and license terms with DevExpress before shipping or purchasing.
9. Common problems and fixes
The XAML namespace or control is unresolved
Confirm that the WPF PDF Viewer package or installer product is referenced, the DevExpress assemblies target the same version, and the XAML namespace is exactly http://schemas.devexpress.com/winfx/2008/xaml/pdf. Clean and rebuild after changing package versions.
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The PDF does not load
Check that a full path exists and is readable, a URI is correctly formed, and a stream has not been disposed too early. Try loading a known-good local PDF to separate source problems from document problems. Catch and display the exception rather than silently replacing the viewer content.
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Recent files or the start screen are missing
Ensure ShowStartScreen is true and that the command bar/start-screen properties were not overridden by a style. A deliberately configured CommandBarStyle="None" also removes the built-in command surface.
Printing is slow or differs from the screen
Compare the configured rendering path, printer driver, paper settings, and page range. Test XPS versus the available legacy or GDI+ paths where documented for your version, and be aware of GDI+ rendering limitations.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I bind DocumentSource in XAML?
Yes. DocumentSource can be assigned through the documented source types, but choose the form appropriate to your resource, URI, stream, byte-array, or file-path lifetime and verify the property type in your installed version.
How do I remove the built-in toolbar?
Set CommandBarStyle to None, either in XAML or through the designer’s Quick Actions, then provide any commands your application still needs.
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Does basic PDF viewing automatically require a DevExpress subscription?
The cited licensing statement specifically covers listed PDF Document API capabilities used in production. Confirm the current DevExpress terms for your edition and intended features rather than assuming the statement applies to every viewer operation.
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