Ironpress for C++

Ironpress provides a header-only C++17 wrapper over its stable C ABI. It keeps native converter and PDF allocations under move-only RAII ownership, while the Rust renderer remains the only implementation of document behavior.

Install

Download the archive for your platform from an Ironpress GitHub release and point CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH at its root. The default target uses the shared native library:

find_package(Ironpress CONFIG REQUIRED)
target_link_libraries(your_target PRIVATE Ironpress::CXX)

Use Ironpress::CXXStatic for static linkage. Both targets provide the include path, require C++17, and carry the native link contract transitively.

The repository also maintains source recipes for Conan 2 and vcpkg. They build and test Ironpress::CXX from the tagged source on the full native matrix before submission to the public registries. See the native package manager guide to validate or consume the in-repository recipes. GitHub release archives remain the public installation path until the external submissions are accepted.

The archive contains both ironpress.hpp and ironpress.h. Keep these headers paired with the library from the same archive. The wrapper checks the linked ABI generation before allocating or converting.

Convert HTML

#include "ironpress.hpp"

#include <fstream>

int main() {
    ironpress::Converter converter;
    converter.set_page_size(ironpress::PageSize::letter)
        .set_margins(ironpress::PageMargins::uniform(36.0F))
        .set_footer("Page {page} / {pages}");

    const auto pdf = converter.convert_html("<h1>Hello from C++</h1>");
    std::ofstream output("output.pdf", std::ios::binary);
    output.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*>(pdf.data()),
                 static_cast<std::streamsize>(pdf.size()));
}

Use set_header_html or set_footer_html for sanitized images, tables, and styled markup in page margins. The plain setters never infer HTML.

Converter and Pdf cannot be copied. Moving either object transfers its one native owner, and destruction releases that owner through the matching C ABI function. A moved-from object is empty and may be destroyed or assigned again.

Errors

Fallible methods throw ironpress::Error. Its status() method exposes a stable ironpress::Status category, while native_status() preserves an unknown status from a newer library. The diagnostic in what() is copied before the native error owner is released.

Validated value constructors use std::invalid_argument, matching normal C++ argument handling before any native call occurs.

No C++ exception crosses the native boundary. Rust panics are caught by the C ABI, returned as Status::internal, and only then translated into a C++ exception. Destructors never throw.

Fonts and binary input

ironpress::BytesView borrows bytes without copying them. Its source must stay alive for the complete call:

std::vector<std::uint8_t> font = read_font();
converter.add_font("Inter", ironpress::BytesView(font));

The same API accepts the five optional CJK and emoji packs through add_font_pack.

Threads and capabilities

A converter may move between threads while idle. Do not configure, convert, or destroy the same owner concurrently. PDF byte views remain valid until their Pdf owner is destroyed or moved.

The wrapper exposes the same portable contract as the C ABI: HTML and Markdown PDF bytes, reusable converters, page geometry, quality controls, sanitization, headers, footers, custom fonts, and optional font packs. It does not read local paths or enable remote resources.

Build from source

cargo build --release -p ironpress-ffi
IRONPRESS_PROFILE=release bindings/cpp/tests/run.sh

CI extracts the exact release archive, then compiles and runs CMake consumers against static and shared libraries with GCC, Clang, and MSVC.