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When a virtual server is created, it inherits the settings established in the Master Property sheet for the IIS server on which it is created. To modify these settings for the virtual directory, right-click the virtual server in the MMC and select Properties from the shortcut menu. This will open the Web Site Property sheet (see Figure 5-15), which has the same nine tabs that the Default Web Site Property sheet has, allowing you to fully configure the settings for your Web site. For more information on any of these settings, refer to Chapter 3.

Deleting Virtual Servers

To delete a virtual server, right-click its node in the Microsoft Management Console and select Delete from the shortcut menu to confirm the deletion.

NOTE: Deleting a virtual server does not delete the Web content in its home directory; it only deletes the mapping from the virtual server to the home directory.

Using Virtual Servers

Below, we revisit the scenario given earlier in this chapter to illustrate the usefulness of using virtual servers in your intranet deployment.

Scenario

Management assigns the network administrator for MTIT Ltd. the task of developing a corporate intranet. This intranet will contain content created and managed by the following divisions: Planning, Records, and Design. Each division will be responsible for developing its own content and managing access to it. These divisions also have extensive legacy content (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents) stored in various folders on several file servers. Minimal resources are to be employed for building the intranet. What is the best way to proceed?

Possible Solution

Create a home directory for each division on a file server that has available space to house the home directories. Instruct content developers to store their home pages and other relevant pages in their home directories. Provide them with HTML creation tools and enough training to get them going.

Install Internet Information Server on an existing server that has sufficient free resources. Say, for sake of argument, that this server is called www.mtit.com. Create three virtual servers on the IIS server. Call these servers:

planning.mtit.com

records.mtit.com

design.mtit.com

Map these virtual servers to their respective home directories. Assign Web site operators for each virtual server. Give these individuals training on how to modify their Web site settings, how to create virtual directories, how to manage access to their sites, and so on. The operators will need to create virtual directories to allow access to legacy content without necessitating conversion of the content to HTML. For example, the Planning division might create a virtual directory accessed by the URL

http://planning.mtit.com/ppt

that maps to a folder containing PowerPoint files of planning session presentations.

Create a home page for the default Web site www.mtit.com that identifies this as the company intranet, establishes policies and rules of use, and provides links to each division's home page on its own Web site.

Standardize on Internet Explorer 5.0 as the browser client to be used throughout the company.

Understanding Host Header Names

IIS 5.0 allows multiple domain names to be mapped to a single IP address and TCP port number using a mechanism called host header names. This mechanism is a new feature of IIS 5.0 not available in previous versions of IIS and is a new feature of the HTTP 1.1 specification. To use host headers on an intranet or the Internet, the following must be configured:

• Multiple host names must be mapped to a single IP address using either a DNS server or a HOSTS file so the host names can be resolved to the IP address. For information on configuring Windows DNS server, see Appendix B.
• HTTP 1.1--compliant browsers must be used (MS Internet Explorer 3.0 or later, or Netscape Navigator 2.0 or later).
• Multiple host header names must be configured on the Web Site Property sheet for each virtual server.

To configure multiple identities for a virtual server, right-click the selected virtual server in the MMC and select Properties from the shortcut menu to open the Web Site Properties sheet. Select the Web Site tab and click the Advanced button to open the Advanced Multiple Web Site Configuration sheet (see Figure 5-16). This sheet is used to add, remove, and edit identities for your Web site.

To specify an additional identity for your Web site, click the Add button and specify the IP address, port, and host header name (see Figure 5-17). IIS 5.0 allows you to specify multiple host header names for the same IP/port combination.

The Advanced Multiple Web Site Properties sheet.

Specifying a Web Site identity.

Suppose your company MTIT Ltd. has an IIS server with a Web site accessed by the URL

http://www.mtit.com.

A merger takes place with another company. For a period of time your company has a dual identity, MTIT Ltd. and Santry Ltd. You register the new domain name santry.com using the same IP address because you want to access your MTIT Web site with the alternative URL

http://www.santry.com.

To complete the process, you configure your Web server to respond to the additional identity as described in the previous section and access the site using an HTTP 1.1--compliant browser.

As another example, suppose you are an Internet service provider hosting several hundred Web sites each having its own domain name, but you only have a limited number of available IP addresses. To overcome this limitation, you could use host header names and assign all of the domain names to a single IP address. In this situation, you would need to enable users with older browsers that do not support host header names to reach the correct site. Refer to the IIS 5.0 online documentation for the topic "Supporting Host Header Names in Older Browsers" for more information on how to configure this.

Summary

IIS 5.0 provides two mechanisms for mapping local and remote content to URLs: virtual servers (or Web sites) and virtual directories. By combining these two features, administrators can delegate management of Web sites to departmental Web site operators on intranets, or to Web site owners on a public Internet site, thus making their own job easier. These virtual servers and directories can be created and deleted without affecting the content on which they are based.

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