In the previous tip we explained how PowerShell can send PDF documents to the default PDF printer. This generic approach is OK for simple scenarios but won’t let you choose a specific printer.
You get more control when you use a specific software because then you can use specific features exposed by that software.
The example below uses Acrobat Reader to print out PDF documents. It shows how you can use the specific options in Acrobat Reader to choose any printer you want, plus Acrobat Reader automatically closes after printing the document.
# PDF document to print out $PDFPath = "C:\docs\document.pdf" # find Acrobat Reader $Paths = @(Resolve-Path -Path "C:\Program Files*\Adobe\*\reader\acrord32.exe") # none found if ($Paths.Count -eq 0) { Write-Warning "Acrobat Reader not installed. Cannot continue." return } # more than one found, choose one manually if ($Paths.Count -gt 1) { $Paths = @($Paths | Out-GridView -Title 'Choose Acrobat Reader' -OutputMode Single) } $Software = $Paths[0] # does it exist? $exists = Test-Path -Path $Software if (!$exists) { Write-Warning "Acrobat Reader not found. Cannot continue." return } # choose printer $printerName = Get-Printer | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Name | Sort-Object | Out-GridView -Title "Choose Printer" -OutputMode Single $printer = Get-Printer -Name $printerName $drivername= $printer.DriverName $portname=$printer.PortName $arguments='/S /T "{0}" "{1}" "{2}" {3}' -f $PDFPath, $printername, $drivername, $portname Start-Process $Software -ArgumentList $arguments -Wait
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