IIS 6.0 Metabase Features

  • Article

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

The IIS 6.0 metabase includes the features described below.

The metabase schema can be modified by an administrator

Active Directory® Service Interfaces (ADSI) and Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) use the metabase schema to enforce which properties can be written at a particular key in the metabase. The schema also enforces the data types that can be used for a particular property attribute. You can modify the metabase schema by using ADSI or WMI to customize this enforcement, or to allow out-of -schema properties to be written in the metabase. For information about extending the metabase schema, see The Metabase Schema.

The metabase is 100 percent compatible with IIS 5.0 metabase APIs

Because the XML metabase in IIS 6.0 is fully compatible with IIS 5.0 metabase application programming interfaces (APIs), existing scripts and code will continue to work.

Metabase performance and scalability are improved

The IIS 6.0 metabase improves performance and scalability over earlier versions of IIS in the following ways:

  • Comparable or better disk footprint size compared to the IIS 5.0 metabase

  • Faster read times on Web server startup than the IIS 5.0 binary metabase

  • Equivalent write performance to the IIS 5.0 binary metabase

The metabase incorporates rich functionality

The metabase incorporates rich functionality with the following features:

  • Property inheritance

  • Data typing of property values

  • Change notification when metabase properties change

  • Security

  • Simplified backup and restore of your IIS configuration

  • Easier import and export of individual nodes to other computers

Benefits of Plaintext XML Files

Plaintext XML metabase files offer the benefits described below.

Metabase files can be edited directly by using common text editors

The metabase configuration file, MetaBase.xml, can be easily read and edited by using common text editors, such as Notepad, which is provided as part of the Microsoft® Windows® operating system. Editing the metabase configuration file directly will be of interest primarily for administrators who do not want to use scripts or code to administer IIS. In addition, editing the metabase configuration file directly is faster than using IIS Manager when administering IIS over a slow network connection. It is recommended that you become familiar with the structure of MetaBase.xml before you attempt to configure IIS by editing the MetaBase.xml file.

Important

Editing the MBSchema.xml file directly is not supported. Changes made to the metabase schema must be made programmatically by using the IIS ADSI provider.

Improved metabase corruption recovery and troubleshooting

The metabase makes it easier to diagnose potential metabase corruption because the metabase is stored in a plaintext file, and it can be analyzed by using tools such as the WinDiff utility. The WinDiff utility is located in the Deploy.cab file in the \Support\Tools folder of your Microsoft® Windows® Server 2003, Standard Edition; Windows® Server 2003, Enterprise Edition; Windows® Server 2003, Datacenter Edition; or Windows® Server 2003, Web Edition operating system CD. As the metabase is edited and saved to disk, IIS makes copies of each version of the MetaBase.xml and MBSchema.xml files in the History folder. In other words, the metabase history feature is like an automatic backup mechanism. You can use history files to compare changes that have been made to the MetaBase.xml and MBSchema.xml files.

Improved metabase backup and restore capabilities

By using Backup/Restore Configuration, administrators can back up the metabase and encrypt it with any password. If a critical failure occurs, the metabase can be restored on a different computer or on a different installation of the operating system. Additionally, the metabase can be restored by using an earlier version of the MetaBase.xml and MBSchema.xml files from the History folder.