Process for Deploying ASP.NET Applications in IIS 6.0

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

The process for deploying new ASP.NET applications on a newly installed Web server requires no understanding of earlier versions of IIS or the .NET Framework. All the ASP.NET configuration sections in the Machine.config and Web.config files are configured the same way in IIS 6.0, except for the <processModel> section of the Machine.config file. When IIS 6.0 is configured to run in worker process isolation mode, some of the attributes in the <processModel> section of the Machine.config file are now in equivalent IIS 6.0 metabase properties. For more information about how to migrate attributes in the Machine.config file to their equivalent IIS 6.0 metabase property settings, see Migrating Machine.config Attributes to IIS 6.0 Metabase Property Settings.

In addition, if your ASP.NET applications need to retain session state, you must configure IIS 6.0 to use the appropriate ASP.NET application session state method. Depending on the method you select, you might need to configure the ASP.NET state service or Microsoft SQL Server™ to act as the repository for centralized state storage.

The process for deploying ASP.NET applications in IIS 6.0 is shown in Figure 2.1.

Figure 2.1 Deploying ASP.NET Applications in IIS 6.0

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Note

Before deploying your ASP.NET applications on a production server, perform the process outlined in this section on a test server that is configured identically to your production server.

The following quick-start guide provides a detailed overview of the process for deploying ASP.NET applications in IIS 6.0. You can use this guide to help identify the steps of the ASP.NET application deployment process that you need additional information to complete, and to skip the steps with which you are already familiar. In addition, all of the procedures that are required to complete the ASP.NET application deployment process are documented in Appendix A: IIS Deployment Procedures.

Deploy the Web Server

  1. Install Windows Server 2003.

  2. Install and configure IIS 6.0.

  3. Enable ASP.NET in the Web service extensions list.

Install ASP.NET Applications

  1. Create Web sites and virtual directories for each ASP.NET application by doing the following:

    • Create Web sites and home directories.

    • Create virtual directories.

  2. Copy ASP.NET application content to the Web server.

  3. Enable common storage for ASP.NET session state by completing the following steps:

    • Select the method for maintaining and storing ASP.NET session state.

    • If you decided to maintain session state with the ASP.NET state service, configure out-of-process session state with the ASP.NET state service.

    • If you decided to maintain session state with SQL Server, configure out-of-process session state with SQL Server.

    • Configure encryption and validation keys.

    • Configure ASP.NET to use the appropriate session state.

    • Secure the ASP.NET session state connection string.

Complete the ASP.NET Application Deployment

  1. Ensure the security and availability of your ASP.NET applications.

  2. Verify that the ASP.NET applications were deployed successfully.

  3. Back up the Web server.

  4. Enable client access to your ASP.NET applications.