Professional IIS 7.0

Chapter 2. IIS 7.0 Architecture

The origins of IIS as a service to deliver data via HTTP and Gopher requests determined the architecture of IIS for six generations. Over the years, IIS architecture has evolved from serving simple requests and providing a Common Gateway Interface (CGI), to include interpreted scripting languages for active server pages, or ASP, now referred to as ASP Classic. Newer versions added the ability to include the ASP.NET framework for server-processed programs, as well as brand-new technologies such as AJAX and SilverLight.

Understanding the basic architecture of IIS through previous versions will help you understand the changes in IIS 7.0, as well as help you understand problems in converting applications and sites from previous versions. IIS has often been compared to the Apache open source server, and often derided as not providing the configurability of Apache. Many organizations have chosen Apache as their web platform, often because of misinformation, and in some cases have regretted the decision. While most organizations can work with either web server technology as a base, the choice of web server technology determines many future choices as well, such as the ability to leverage ASP.NET for web applications. In many ways, IIS 7.0 architecture changes void the reasons for choosing Apache as a web platform. IIS 7.0 still supports previous architectures for those who need to reuse applications and sites.

IIS 4.0 and Previous Versions

IIS 4.0, first introduced ...