Background Intelligent Transfer Service

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Background Intelligent Transfer Service

Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) helps you transfer large amounts of data without degrading network performance. It does this by transferring data in small chunks, utilizing unused bandwidth as it becomes available, and reassembling the data at the destination. BITS is supported on Microsoft® Windows Server 2003 family operating systems and on Microsoft® Windows 2000 Servers.

BITS downloads and uploads both file names, as Universal Resource Locators (URLs), and data. Any transfers that are interrupted by network disconnections or by computer shutdowns and restarts resume when network connectivity is re-established.

BITS Server Extensions is part of Internet Information Services (IIS) and has the following components:

  • BITS management console snap-in, for configuring and managing BITS by using Microsoft Management Console (MMC).

  • BITS server extension ISAPI, which is used for BITS data transfer.

If you want client computers to be able to use BITS to upload files to a server, you must configure an IIS server with BITS Server Extensions installed and activated.

For more information, see the following topics and Web sites: