Dedicated Hosting

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

Dedicated hosting is typically reserved for those customers who have the greatest availability, security, and performance requirements for their dynamic Web sites. In some cases, you might put only one or two sites on an IIS server to ensure there are enough memory and CPU resources to meet customer requirements. In other cases, dedicated hosting means the customer pays to have their own server or servers. Dedicated hosting can be configured in the following ways.

Configure one unique application pool per Web site

Process boundaries separate each worker process so that problems in one application pool do not affect other application pools on the server. By configuring each Web site in a different application pool, you ensure greater reliability, availability, and security. For information about how to configure application pools, see Running IIS 6.0 as an Application Server.

Configure one unique anonymous user per site

Configuring one unique anonymous user per site adds a security layer by ensuring that users cannot access content on sites to which they are not permitted access.

Configure one unique user to run as the process identity of the application pool

Configuring one unique user to run as the process identity of the application pool adds an additional layer of security by ensuring that one site cannot access content on another site. If you specify a unique user account, be sure to add that account to the IIS_WPG group. When you use a built-in account, try to use Network Service because it offers the best balance between security and functionality.

If you experience scalability issues on a dedicated hosting computer, see Shared Static and Dynamic Hosting.