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About IIS Configuration

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IIS stores its configuration settings in a file called the metabase and in the registry. When you create a Web or FTP site, create virtual directories, set properties that configure IIS applications or govern how IIS operates, change performance and security settings, install ISAPI DLLs, or make choices about what information is written to the IIS log files, you are configuring IIS. By default, only system administrators have permission to configure the registry or the metabase.

For example code that is used to configure IIS, see Using IIS Programmatic Administration.

Configuration Data Stored in the Registry

In the first three versions of IIS, all configuration data was stored in the registry. In IIS 4.0, most of the configuration data in the registry was migrated to the metabase in the form of properties. The properties that remain in the registry are used to initiate IIS services, are specific to a service, or are global to IIS and all services.

Registry entries that exist to enable backward compatibility with previous versions of IIS are duplicated in the metabase. You can set them in either location and the registry entries in both locations will be updated. In IIS 6.0, very fewregistry entries remain.

For a list of registry entries and more information about their purpose, see IIS Registry Entries.

Configuration Data Stored in the Metabase

Starting with IIS 4.0, all configuration settings that a developer might want to alter became available in the metabase.

For a list of IIS properties and more information about their purpose, see the Metabase Property Reference.

For detailed architectural and administrative information about the metabase, see the section titled IIS Metabase in the user documentation that comes with IIS Manager.

Content Storage Compared to Configuration Storage

Content storage is different than configuration storage. All the Web files, FTP files, ISAPI DLLs, COM components, and other files in an IIS application make up the content of your application. Content is stored in the file system of your computer. If you want to create an IIS application on a temporary IIS server and then move it to a live IIS server, you must move the content as well as the configuration information.