Windows 7 / Getting Started

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Install the Application or Dedicated Web Server Role

The Application server role and the Dedicated Web server role are similar because both can rely on IIS to provide a platform for applications to run. The major difference is that the Dedicated Web server role is based on the Web edition of Windows Server 2008. The Application server role is based on the other three editions.

There are several tasks to perform when preparing IIS Web or Application servers:

• Everything begins with the addition of the role in Server Manager. Right-click Roles in Server Manager, and select Add Roles.
• In the Web edition, the role is called Web Server (IIS), and in the other three editions, you can select simply the Web Server (IIS) role or you can select the Application server role, which will let you include the Web server role. For the purposes of simplicity, the installation of the Application server role is covered here.
• Use the values in Table-2 to run through the Application-and, therefore, the Web-server role installation.

Once installed, you will manage IIS through the IIS management console. As mentioned earlier, this console includes two views: the features view and the content view. The features view is used to access the components that make IIS and web sites run. The content view is used to see the files that make up a web site. Administrators familiar with previous versions of IIS will be more comfortable in the content view, since it closely resembles previous versions of IIS Manager. You will, however, need to switch from one view to the other to be able to modify the settings of any component in the content view. But if you want to modify the Windows properties of the objects you select, you need to do so in the content view.

In addition, the previous metabase-the database that contained all of the settings for IIS in previous versions-is now completely gone. Instead, IIS takes its configuration structure from ASP.NET and now includes XML-based configuration files, just as ASP.NET web sites did in previous releases. Default configuration information is now contained within a file called applicationHost.config. This file contains server-level configuration settings.

TABLE-2 Values for the Application Server Role Installation

Add Application Server Role Wizard Page	Value
Select Server Role	Select Application Server. The Web Server (IIS) role will be available as you run through the options for the main server role. On the Web edition, select Web Server (IIS) role.
Add Roles Wizard Dialog Box	When you select the Application server role, Server Manager warns you of its dependencies. In this case, you also need the Windows Process Activation Service, along with its, three subcomponents.
Application Server	Review information about this role if required before you move on.
Role Services	Several services are available for this role: Application Server Foundation is selected by default. Select Web Server (IIS) Support to include the Web server installation in the application server. Required services and features will automatically be selected. Add the required role services. Note that this also includes.NET Framework version 3. Add COM+ network access to support remoting of COM+ or enterprise services applications. Add Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) port sharing to support application isolation, even if they share the same TCP port, for example, port 80. Under Windows Process Activation Service Support, note that HTTP Activation is selected by default. Add Message Queuing Activation, TCP Activation, and/or Named Pipes Activation based on the requirements of the applications you need to support. Your developers or the documentation of the application should indicate which activation service is required. Note that additional features will be required to support these activation methods. Add Distributed Transactions if your application will reside on multiple servers and interact with multiple information sources. Once again, your developers or the documentation of the application will indicate whether these components are required or not.
Server Authentication Certificate	If you selected the WS-Atomic Transactions method to support Distributed Transactions, then Server Manager will want you to select and install a PKI certificate to authenticate this server to others. Three choices are available: Choose an existing certificate Create a self-signed certificate Choose a certificate later The first or third choice is recommended. If at all possible, you should select a certificate from an external certificate authority (CA) because it will automatically be trusted by the clients on your network. If you choose a self-signed certificate, you will need to install it manually on each client that interacts with this IIS server.
Web Server (IIS)	Review information about this role if required before you move on.
IIS Role Services	Use the information in Table-1 (previous section) to select the options you need to install for this role. Select only the options you need. Remember that you can add or remove role services when required.
Confirm Installation Selections	Review your choices before proceeding. Use the Previous button to make corrections if required. Click Install when ready.
Installation Progress and Installation Results	Review the installation progress, and click Finish when done.

Then, a hierarchy of web.config files is stored within each application's directory and provides further configuration settings for applications. In previous editions of Windows and IIS, you needed to manually configure settings in these .config files. In IIS 7, you configure settings through the modules in IIS Manager, and these modules make the required modifications in the .config files.

In addition, IIS 7 includes a command-line tool, APPCMD.EXE, that lets you script any activity on the server. IIS Manager also supports remote administration through normal Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) ports, such as 443. This is enabled by modifying the Management Service settings under the Management section of the details pane:

1. Double-click the Management Service icon.
2. Click Enable Remote Connections.
3. Determine the authentication mode.
4. Move to the action pane, and click Start to start the service.
5. Then click Apply in the action pane to enable remote administration. Click the server name in the tree pane to return to the features view.

Finally, you can delegate any activity within the IIS 7 console. This is performed through the Feature Delegation icon in the Management section of the features view. Each component of IIS can be delegated. Several settings are available in the action pane: Read/Write, Read Only, Not Delegated, and Reset to Inherited. By controlling each of these settings, you can create a fine-grained delegation strategy for IIS management. This is ideal to provide Web masters with the ability to manage their own sites, but without the ability to manage overall IIS Server settings.