Developing fonts > Tools & SDKs

OpenType embedding SDK

This page is for historical reference only. The embedding SDK is no longer available. T2embed.dll, the embedding code, has been included with Windows since Windows 98, and the interfaces have been documented at MSDN for several years.

The OpenType Font Embedding SDK enables authoring applications to embed OpenType (and TrueType) fonts in documents, and allows display clients to display the text using the embedded fonts.

The SDK has two components:

  1. A collection of objects and high-level interfaces for the Windows Embedded Font Tool (WEFT). These com objects allow web authoring applications to use the WEFT 'engine' to analyze the fonts and characters used in web documents, and to embed fonts in web documents. Applications using these com interfaces have access to the sophisticated analysis features of WEFT, including a font database and the subsetter.

  2. The OpenType font embedding services library, whose APIs are designed for applications loading embedded fonts, embedding non-web documents, and performing low-level functions related to font embedding. WEFT and many Microsoft applications use the library to embed fonts or load embedded fonts.


Licensing the SDK

The embedding services are licensed free of charge. A written license agreement is available upon request from Microsoft. The license agreement stipulates, among other things, that licensees respect all usage restrictions associated with any font encountered, as detailed in the OpenType Font Specification. The SDK is aimed at software developers who want to build font embedding features into their authoring tools. To receive a copy of this license, please contact us. To add embedded font support to Web pages, use our free WEFT tool.


Font embedding articles



this page was last updated 30 September 2008.

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