PRB: Printer Setup Not Remembered When Using Visual C++ Application

ID: Q148891

The information in this article applies to:

The Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC), used with:
- Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Editions, versions 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 5.0, 6.0

SYMPTOMS

As you run an MFC application that was created with Visual C++ 4.0 and greater on Windows NT 3.51, the printer setup is not remembered. This behavior occurs only with Windows NT 3.51, not with Windows 95.

CAUSE

When an application displays the Print dialog box, displays the Print Setup dialog box, or goes into Print Preview, MFC calls the function CWinApp::UpdatePrinterSelection(). MFC checks for the following conditions if the default printer is being used:

Default printer no longer has a printer.

Default printer has changed.

Default printer has not changed.

Depending on the results of these tests, MFC sets up the Device Names and the Device Mode variables in the PRINTDLG structure (m_pd) of the CPrintDialog object.

In evaulating whether the default printer has changed, MFC checks to see if the Driver Name, Device Name, and Port Name has changed by comparing these parameters against the defaults obtained from using PD_RETURNDEFAULT. In Windows NT 3.51, ::PrintDlg() is not obtaining the same Port Name when using PD_RETURNDEFAULT as it does when it obtains the Port Name from displaying the print dialog. Therefore, the overall "IF" check succeeds making MFC think that the default printer has changed. This forces the Print dialog box to repopulate itself with the original default values.

This was not a problem in earlier 32-bit versions of MFC because there the port name was not checked.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a bug in Windows NT version 3.51. This problem has been corrected in Windows NT Service Pack 4. For information on how to obtain it, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q128465 How To Obtain Windows NT Version 3.51 U.S. Service Pack

There is no programmatic workaround in MFC. The user should select the printer properties button from the print dialog in order to set the paper orientation or any other settings.

MORE INFORMATION

Sample Code

To recreate this problem, create an AppWizard-generated application, run it, and choose Print Setup from the File menu. Change the page orientation to landscape, and click OK. Bring up the Print Setup dialog box again, and notice that the orientation has been set back to portrait.

Additional query words: 4.00 4.10

Keywords : kbenv kbMFC kbPrinting kbVC kbNTOS400sp4fix
Version : winnt:4.0,4.1,4.2,5.0,6.0
Platform : winnt
Issue type : kbprb