The IIS team has released another preview of even more additions to IIS 7.

This time its the IIS 7 admin pack which adds some UI features that enhance the administration experience beyond what you get out of the box. This is possible due to the overhaul of the IIS  configuriation system which allows UI extensibility as well control over the request processing pipeline.

The admin pack adds (quote from Carlos' blog)

Request Filtering UI - This UI exposes the configuration of the IIS runtime feature called Request Filtering.

• Configuration Editor UI - This UI provides an advanced generic configuration editor entirely driven by our configuration schema. It includes things like Script Generation, Search functionality, advanced information such as locking and much more.
• Database Manager UI - This UI allows you to manage SQL Server databases from within IIS Manager, including the ability to create tables, execute queries, add indexes, primary keys, query data, insert rows, delete rows, and much more.
• IIS Reports UI - This extensible platform exposes a set of reports including some log parser based reports, displaying things like Top URL's, Hits per User, Page Performance, and many more.
• FastCGI UI - This UI exposes the configuration for the FastCGI runtime feature.
• ASP.NET Authorization UI - This UI allows you to configure the ASP.NET authorization settings.
• ASP.NET Custom Errors UI - This UI allows you to configure the Custom errors functionality of ASP.NET

Pay particularly close attention to the Database Manager UI. Carlos' had this idea a while back and did some very cool demos with it while IIS 7 was in beta. You can manage your SQL database right in the IIS 7 UI! Sweet.

Check it out http://blogs.msdn.com/carlosag/archive/2008/03/21/IISAdminPackTP1Released.aspx

-brett

Sukesh has developed and released on codeplex, a mobile application that lets your manage an IIS 7 server from your cell phone!

This is very cool application that shows off some of the great technology that is built into IIS 7 and .NET. This app uses the hostable web core, and LINQ plus the new management API, ,microsoft.web.adminsitration.

You can find his blog at http://www.awesomeideas.net/page/IIS7-Mobile-Admin.aspx which links into codeplex where you can download the source code!

Very  nice Sukesh! Keep em comin.

Thanks,

Brett

I can tell from the log files that webdav and IIS 7 is one of the hot search items.

So, here ya go! - here's an email I got at Microsoft annoucing it

---------------------------

After a year and a half of work and hundreds of hours of labor, we shipped the new WebDAV Extension for IIS 7.0 earlier today!

The new module is now available from the following URLs:

·         Microsoft WebDAV Extension for IIS 7.0 (x86)

o   http://www.iis.net/go/1621/

·         Microsoft WebDAV Extension for IIS 7.0 (x64)

o   http://www.iis.net/go/1618/

This new WebDAV module specifically targets RFC compliance, better integration into IIS, easier configuration, and more configurable security options.

The following walkthroughs have been published on the http://learn.iis.net/ web site to help people get started using the new WebDAV module:

• Getting Started:
• Installing and Configuring WebDAV on IIS 7.0
• What’s New for Microsoft and WebDAV?
• Using the WebDAV Redirector
• Advanced Administrative Features:
• How to manage WebDAV using APPCMD
• How to use custom properties with WebDAV
• How to configure WebDAV and Request Filtering
• Migrating FPSE Sites to WebDAV

Looking over the logs for search queries that wind up here, there's a need to post some FAQs now that IIS 7 is out.

Q: Can I install IIS 7 on XP or Windows Server 2003?
A: No.

Q: Where do I download IIS 7?
A: It's on the Vista or Windows Server 2008 DVD. Don't look for IIS7 on microsoft.com, it's not there.

Q: I have Vista, but don't see IIS 7.
A: Not all versions have IIS7.  See http://learn.iis.net/page.aspx/28/installing-iis7-on-vista/

Q: What happend to IIS_WPG?
A: See http://www.brettblog.com/2007/10/13/IISGroupsAndUsers.aspx

Q: What happened to the IUSR anonymous user?
A: See http://www.brettblog.com/2007/10/13/IISGroupsAndUsers.aspx

Q: Where is the mother lode of IIS7 info?
A: http://iis.net

Q: How do I disable IPv6?
A: Network properties for NIC

Q: How do I enable WebDAV (DAV) on IIS 7?
A: http://www.iis.net/downloads/default.aspx?tabid=34&g=6&i=1579 Note that you will need to adust the URLFiltering section to allow DAV (see http://learn.iis.net/page.aspx/354/how-to-configure-webdav-with-request-filtering/ )

Q: Where do I get the updated IIS 7 FTP Server?
A: http://www.iis.net/downloads/default.aspx?tabid=34&g=6&i=1619

If you have more questions you'd like see on this list, let me know!

-brett

As we near release for Windows Server 2008, the IIS team has released a beta of a very important tool called the Microsoft Web Deployment Tool.

How to replicate content and setting for web servers continually arises and is one of the most frequently asked questions I receive. Perhaps the second, and closely related question is how to migrate from IIS 6 to IIS 7. This tool has been in development for months but has not been widely discussed publicly so I personally and delighted that it is finally public.

Those of you who need something like this to replicate 6-6, 6-7 and 7-7 scenarios - please download and test this tool.  You can provide feedback to me or via the forums at iis.net. I'd be happy to connect your feedback to the managing PM on the IIS team.

Below is an email that circulated internally annoucing the tool with links.

Enjoy!

-brett

-----------

IIS is thrilled to announce the Technical Preview 1 release of the Microsoft Web Deployment Tool! The tool provides deployment and migration support for IIS 6.0 and 7.0. It incorporates many features that enable web server administrators to deploy, sync and migrate sites, including configuration, content, SSL certificates and other types of content associated with a Web server.

This tool can be used on Windows Server 2008 and IIS 7.0 as well as Windows Server 2003 and IIS 6.0. Please note that this is a Technical Preview release of the tool and should not be used on production servers. For a Tech Preview, only forum level support is available.  

How to Get Started

Download and read the walkthroughs: http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=8100895

Download the x86 version: http://www.iis.net/downloads/default.aspx?tabid=34&g=6&i=1602

Download the x64 version: http://www.iis.net/downloads/default.aspx?tabid=34&g=6&i=1603

Web Deployment Tool forum: http://forums.iis.net/1144.aspx

Web Deployment Team blog: http://blogs.iis.net/msdeploy/

Features

The following list contains several of the features in this version:

·         Synchronization and Snapshot of IIS 6.0/IIS 7.0:

The sync operation provides administrators with a way to quickly synchronize a site or server and deploy changes to existing sites and servers. A synchronization allows you to synchronize one source with one destination. For example, you can synchronize two directory paths or two web servers. The sync can be performed with local or remote objects.

The snapshot, or archive, functionality allows administrators or developers to quickly take an archive of their web site or server for rollback, restore or backup purposes.

·         Migration from IIS 6.0:

The migrate operation provides administrators with a way to migrate sites or entire servers from IIS 6.0 to IIS 7.0, including their settings and content. A migration is essentially a way of synchronizing, filtered by migration rules. For example, when migrating from IIS 6.0 to IIS 7.0, MS Deploy will check the value of some properties and see if it is the IIS 6.0 default. If it is the default, such as the log files directory, it will instead use the value set on the IIS 7.0 server. This enables a server admin to maintain new settings on IIS 7.0 while moving sites or applications from IIS 6.0.

·         Analysis of IIS 6.0 Installed Features:

The analyze operation allows administrators to check what components are installed on the source server. In this way, they can determine if features are present that they will need in IIS 7.0 or that require more advanced setup than simply copying files. For example, ASP.NET requires more than a file copy and will need to be installed on the destination server.

·         Troubleshooting and Validation Features:

For validating an operation, the -whatif flag allows administrators to see what actions would happen when they perform an operation. This is especially useful for performing sync or migration, when they want to validate what changes will be made before performing them. For troubleshooting, the -verboseLevel flag allows administrators to get rich detail about what operations are being performed, and upon failure, the ability to diagnose the problem.

I just ran across these events sponsored by MSDN!

These are free sessions being held all over the country. Check it out!

http://www.msdnevents.com/

In days past, a Web server was simply a place to throw your static and dynamic pages for delivery. That’s all changed with recent releases of IIS – and IIS 7 is no exception. This session will highlight several key features of IIS that make it our most extensible, manageable and secure Web platform ever. You’ll learn about the modular design of IIS and the integrated pipeline, providing for new scenarios that involve sharing authentication across IIS, ASP.NET and other dynamic web server runtimes. We’ll explore how the new IIS protocol listeners enable IIS to host WCF services on a variety of protocols (not just HTTP), providing a scalable and manageable host for your distributed applications. You’ll see how easy it is to write modules and handlers in managed code. Plus you’ll learn about the new security aspects of IIS 7, from initial deployment to feature delegation to administrator lists. After this lively session, you’ll be raring to do much more with your Web server than simply copying over ASP.NET pages.

We’ll cover:

• Authentication methods and integration between ASP.NET and IIS 7
• Writing IIS managed handlers and modules
• How the IIS protocol listeners support hosting WCF services on TCP, Named Pipes and more
• IIS handler permissions, request filtering and administration lists
• How the XML replacement for the Metdata Config file makes it easy to duplicate Web servers
• Features and protocols that make IIS 7 secure right out of the box

Hiya,

Coming out of the Windows Server 2008 Hosting Roadshow, the same technical labs are available through MS Virtual Labs. The links to these labs are below.

Let me know what you think. Thanks!

Let me know what you think or if you have questions.

-brett

A big shout out to IIS Pm Kanwaljeet Singla

File this under must have details for IIS 7. Very practical info on IIS 7 registry keys.

http://blogs.iis.net/ksingla/archive/2007/12/30/list-of-registry-keys-affecting-iis7-behavior.aspx

-brett

WebDAV is a way to publish files to your server. I've been a fan since I first saw it and have been teaching people about it for years. When you have everything setup correctly, you can open a web folder in Network Places (or neighborhood or whatever), or on your desktop, and when you drag and drop files into the folder, it publishes over the network using http to the server. Unfortunately, the story about DAV from Microsoft's end has been rather mottled. The specifics of what is possible using DAV, how it appears and behaves depends on the precise combination of which server you're using (DAV was supported on IIS 5 as well), the client (XP, 2000, Vista), and what application you use to do the DAV connection (Explorer, IE, Office, FrontPage).

However, in IIS 7, there is some very good news. Robert McMurray on the IIS team is the same guy that manages the FTP 7 project. He has improved, the DAV story for IIS 7 in many ways. I've had the chance to chat with him on numerous occasions about his vision and hopes for DAV and other publishing protocols and can tell you that he's the right guy for the job.

One of the biggest improvements is that DAV can be enabled per URL. In IIS 6, and 5, DAV was either functional for all sites or not. Now, you can use it just where you need it. The IIS 7 DAV provider integrates with the IIS 7 UI and leverages IIS 7 URL Authorization. URL Auth lets you allow or deny access to content using web.config files instead of ACLS.

This version of DAV is the SERVER side component. The client side will use one of the various providers mentioned earlier - but should work by simply creating a network connection to a dav enabled URL. One way to do this is in IE, using File, Open and selecting the checkbox "open as a web folder".

Once you setup DAV and get used to using it, you'll wonder how you managed without it.

http://blogs.iis.net/robert_mcmurray/archive/2007/12/22/webdav-module-for-windows-server-2008-golive-beta-is-released.aspx

-brett

So, say you're a developer and your thinking "gosh [like developers would say 'gosh'. How about OMG!], what If I could host IIS 7 in my application rather than have my application delivered by IIS 7".

IIS 7 has a feature that virtually no one has heard of called the hostable web core. It's purely a Developer feature but has a ton of potential so check out this blog post that has the most info released to date.

http://blogs.iis.net/ksingla/archive/2007/12/20/ins-amp-outs-of-hostable-web-core.aspx

Enjoy!

Brett

A really excellent article recently posted on MSDN about PHP and IIS 7. This walks you through creating using a managed module to provide "friendly" URLS with PHP plus using the built in cache to improve application speed. 

IIS 7.0: Enhance Your Apps with the Integrated ASP.NET Pipeline -- MSDN Magazine, January 2008

New IIS 7 Virtual Labs online! 

You can get hands on with IIS 7's new features and capabilties with these free online labs. These are IT Pro focused labs that came from the hosting roadshow and have been re-factored for online use. Enjoy!

• Installation and the Modular Architecture
• Installing ASP, ASP.NET and PHP/FastCGI Applications on IIS 7
• Using the new IIS 7 Configuration System featuring Delegated and Remote Administration 
• Troubleshooting with IIS 7 Failed Request Tracing 
• Using APPCMD with IIS 7

-Brett

BTW, RC1 of Windows Server 2008 is released. AFAIK, this is the last release before RTM.  Expect to see the official launch Feb 28th.

You can upgrade from RC1 to RTM! So if you've been avoiding Beta releases out of concern for stability, RC1 is is solid. (Actually, the server was really solid around beta 3).

Lots of new things to be excited about including an improved TCP/IP stack that should dramatically increase file transfers between Vista/Server and Server/Server. 

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/audsel.mspx

BTW, the bits for SP1 of Vista share a lot in common with server as they are same the code base. As a result, Vista benefits from a lot of work done on Server and visa vera.  In the case of IIS 7, you will also get some new features.

=brett 

It's great to see this list of changes and updates to Vista coming up in SP1. Keep in mind that all of this is baked in to Windows Server 2008 as well. 

http://www.istartedsomething.com/20071208/vista-sp1-changelog/

Microsoft publishes detailed Vista SP1 “changelog” - istartedsomething

https://windowsbeta.microsoft.com/server/intro.aspx  is page that is open to the general public asking for feedback about Windows Server 2008.

I really want to encourage Microsoft to do more of this kind of thing and customer to take advantage of it!

Take a moment to respond if you can.

Thanks,

Brett

Good news!

Some of the labs we are using in the web hosting roadshow are now online. No muss no fuss, and free. The labs use the virtual labs technology that involves Virtual Server services hosted at Technet so you can explore IIS 7 on a real, bona fide, Windows Server 2008 server, over the internet right in your browser. If you haven't checked out the virtual labs, it's very cool. Check it out!

Hey, this blog post by  all around head geek, Scott Guthrie announces a new application deployment system in the works for IIS 7.

...We will also shortly begin sharing details of a new web application deployment framework for IIS that enables you to easily automate the deployment of web applications on either a single server or across a web farm of machines. ...

See the bottom of the post for as many details as are avail. I'll keep you posted as details emerge.

.NET Web Product Roadmap (ASP.NET, Silverlight, IIS7) - ScottGu's Blog

I've said before that Server Core will make a very cool low footprint PHP engine. Here's a How-to that details configuring server core with MySQL and PHP.  Nice work!

Dennis Chung - Windows MVP: Server Core + IIS7 + PHP + MySQL

IIS 6 to IIS 7 Migration planning is starting up in full swing as we approach RTM for IIS 7. For those of looking for a mapping of IIS metabase to IIS 7 applicationhost.config settings, here's a really excellent document published by the IIS documentation team.

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa965021.aspx

A (IIS 6.0 Metabase Property Mapping to IIS 7.0)

Cool!

Here's a new IIS Manager add on that allows you to backup and restore config using appcmd. Nice add on!

: IIS7 - Backup Restore UI Module

The IIS team has release the RTM version of FastCGI for IIS 6. If you're running PHP on IIS 6, or would like to - this release is key for increasing performance and reliability. 

IIS.net : FastCGI Extension for IIS6.0 - RTM : Download : Microsoft Internet Information Services

Here are some photos from the hosting roadshow in Toronto which was very well received!

Windows Server 2008 Hosting Roadshow - a photoset on Flickr

It's all in the name! Sql Server driver for PHP! Now develop and deploy on the same platform. On IIS 7 it's even better cause you get caching, urlathorization, urlfitering, forms authenticaiton and the integrated pipeline. Oh did I mention tracing and diagnostics? 

Download details: SQL Server 2005 Driver for PHP CTP (October 2007)

CTO of Applied.net sounds off about IIS 7 in production.

" I can say with confidence that we currently run IIS7 in production with Kayako Support Suite and it is extremely efficient.  We have always suffered with the challenge of deploying multiple server platforms in order to achieve a specific functionality from a php based application. This is no longer the case thanks to IIS7.   This  also means that “hybrid” developers will finally have a unified development platform."

Really, when I talk about IIS 7 being better, I'm not just making this stuff up.

Web Host Industry Review | theWHIR Blogs : The Skinny on IIS7

By special request, here's an outline of the users and groups used by IIS and what they do.

IIS 5 and 6

- IUSR_<servermame> - this is the default anon user for IIS 4, 5, and 6. It is a local account with a large, random password. The account does not exist until IIS is installed. IIS is installed by default on Windows 2000 but not 2003. If you disable this account, anon authentication will fail unless you create assign a new one. This user is a member of Everyone, Users, Authenicated Users, Guests, and the Network built in account (by default).

- IWAM_<servername> - this guy is found on IIS 5 and on IIS 6. I don't recall if it's in IIS 4 as I haven't laid eyes in an IIS 4 server in about 5 years. In IIS 6, it is only used when you run your server in IIS 5 mode, called IIS 5 worker process isolation mode or some such overly long phrase. In this case, sites  and application that are set to run in medium or high isolation run in dllhost.exe as the IWAM_<servername> user.

- ASPNET - this is a local account used to launch the aspnet_wp.exe on IIS 5 and in IIS 6 when it runs in IIS 5 mode.See http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bakfs900(VS.80).aspx for details on how to control the identity of asp_net.exe. It is not typically used in IIS 6 and is not supported on IIS 7.

- IIS_WPG - This is a local group on Windows Server 2003 that is used for one purpose. The IIS _WPG has rights to register application pools with http.sys. What this means is that that if you assign an application pool a unique idenity, you must also add them to this group. By default, this group has the System, Local Service and Network Service accounts in it. By default, application pools on IIS 6 use the Network Service account. If you don't assign custom application pool idenities, you don't need to mess with the membership of this group. Do not delete this group, espcially on a domain controller.

IIS 7

Doesn't have any of the above accounts. Instead you'll find:

- IUSR - built in account for Windows Server 2008 and Vista. Created when IIS 7 is instaled. The IUSR account has the same SID on all Windows Server 2008 systems and Vista. A built in account is different than a local account. Built in accounts cannot be used to log in locally to the server so they don't have a password.

- IUSRS - This is the updated version of the IIS_WPG for IIS 7. The new coolness is that has autmatically maintained membership.

-------

What runs as who when?

For anonymous access, the request will be the run as the assinged anonymous user (preusming that anon authentication is enabled and the anon user has the required access rights). If the request is for ASP.net, subsequent page requests and background operations will access the file system as the process identity (this is the default behavior). Most of the time this is the Network Service account on IIS 6 or the ASPNET user on IIS 5. If not using ASP.net, file access for will be as the anonymous user unless the application your a running reverts to the process identity to do something on the server that the user does not have rights to do. There are quite a few more complications of course, but this typically how things go.

To do research about this, your best friend is Filemon.exe. I learned most of the limited knowledge I have about this by messing around with Filemon and permissions. When you set Deny Full Control, Everyone on a file and then access the file in the web application while Filemon is running, the Access Denied in Filemon will also show you the user that was denied access. Another fun tool to play with is w3ho.dll, a resource kit utility.

Hopefully this is useful.

Let me know

-brett

More goodness from the IIS team.

Two more updates from the IIS team are available.

A new one that has not been seen before by the public is a "Media Pack" that adds bit rate throttling to to IIS 7. In other words, if you have .WMV on your site that people play, why send it faster than they can play it? This little gem can instantly reclaim bandwidth that is wasted when the client clicks away and tosses unplayed bits they recieved but did not use. 

Also, a stand alone IIS Manager that you install on client systems to do remote authentication has been released.

These are "technical previews", not fully released code so if you want to provide feedback, please do. The Forums on IIS.net is a good place to that.

New IIS7 Modules: IIS7 Remote Manager for Windows Server 2008 RC0 and Media Pack Bit-Rate Throttling Module Tech Preview - Mai-lan's Blog

This new FTP service incorporates many new features that enable web authors to publish content better than before, and offers web administrators more security and deployment options.

·         Integration with IIS 7.0: IIS 7.0 has a brand-new administration interface and configuration store, and the new FTP service is tightly integrated with this new design. The old IIS 6 metabase is gone, and a new configuration store that is based on the .NET XML-based *.config format has taken its place. In addition, IIS 7.0 has a new administration tool, and the new FTP server plugs seamlessly into that paradigm.

·         Support for new Internet standards: One of the most significant features in the new FTP server is support for FTP over SSL. The new FTP server also supports other Internet improvements such as UTF8 and IPv6.

·         Shared hosting improvements: By fully integrating into IIS 7.0, the new FTP server makes it possible to host FTP and Web content from the same site by simply adding an FTP binding to an existing Web site. In addition, the FTP server now has virtual host name support, making it possible to host multiple FTP sites on the same IP address. The new FTP server also has improved user isolation, now making it possible to isolate users through per-user virtual directories.

·