HTML to PDF via Headless Browser

Problem Solved

Converting HTML to PDF often becomes an environment problem: many tools require a separate Chromium, Puppeteer, or container stack. If a machine already has Edge, Chrome, or Chromium, the system browser can print PDF in headless mode. This skill targets that local use case: turn a specified HTML file into a PDF on Windows, macOS, or Linux without adding browser automation dependencies.

How It Works and Where It Applies

The skill locates an available browser by platform priority: Windows checks msedge.exe and chrome.exe; macOS looks for Edge or Chrome; Linux uses which chromium-browser, which chromium, or which google-chrome, and may fall back to fixed paths. It then invokes the browser's --headless and --print-to-pdf behavior, rendering an absolute file:/// path into a PDF.

Important constraints:

• Path format: use forward slashes after file:///, converting backslashes where needed;
• Compatibility: avoid --headless=new if targeting older Edge builds;
• Print styling: use @media print and @page in the HTML to control A4 page size;
• Fallback: if headless printing fails, open the HTML in a browser and use Ctrl+P or Cmd+P to save as PDF.

It fits local files, reports, itineraries, and similar HTML-to-PDF tasks; it is not ideal for high-throughput server rendering or machines without a supported system browser.