Flagship example · Local documents · Native Windows

Open PDFs in a calm native workspace.

A focused tabbed PDF viewer that combines native HWND controls and file workflows with the PDF support already shipped by the WebView2 runtime.

Open the application repository Read the integration guide

MWFL PDF Reader showing a local PDF in a native tabbed workspace — Native tabs, commands, drag and drop, and recent files surround the system WebView2 PDF renderer.

WorkspaceNative document tabs

RenderingEvergreen WebView2

FilesOpen, recent, and drag/drop

RecoveryVisible runtime and process failure states

Why it matters

Small application, complete lifecycle.

The example opens multiple local PDFs, keeps one native tab per document, persists recent files and window placement, exposes keyboard shortcuts, and retains the browser navigation escape hatches that make the embedded renderer useful.

Its GUI self-test creates a real minimal PDF, opens it through the same local-file path as a user document, verifies tab switching and navigation, and exercises graceful WebView2 startup behavior.

Build

Compile, test, and stage the product.

git clone https://github.com/mwfl/pdf-reader.git
cd pdf-reader
cmake --preset vs2026-x64
cmake --build --preset vs2026-x64-release
ctest --preset vs2026-x64-release

The application uses Microsoft's Evergreen WebView2 Runtime and reports a clear empty or failure state when the runtime cannot initialize.