Name
Internet Information Services (IIS)
Synopsis
Enables Windows 2000 to run as an Internet server.
Description
Internet Information Services (IIS) provides server-side support for the most popular, Internet, application-layer protocols including Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), and Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP). The primary use of this service is to enable a Windows 2000 computer to function as a web server.
Tip
The SMTP and NNTP services included in IIS have limited usefulness. For more powerful versions of these protocols, use Microsoft Exchange Server.
IIS is installed by default on Windows 2000 Server and provides a wealth of configuration options that would fill half of this book to explain. I recommend my book Administering IIS5 (McGraw-Hill) for a full treatment of the capabilities of this component of Windows 2000 Server. The discussion here focuses on basic concepts and terminology related to creating and configuring web sites. See web site for procedures to create and configure a web site on an IIS server.
Tip
In most cases you want to have DNS implemented on your network if you are going to use IIS. Otherwise, users will have to specify the IP address of the IIS server they want to access.
IIS Terminology
The following is a sample of some more important IIS terminology:
- Internet Services Manager
The shortcut in Administrative Tools that opens the Internet Information Services console.
- Web site
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