Chapter 1. Introducing IIS 6
IN THIS CHAPTER
Features in IIS 6
Introduction to the Windows Server 2003 Family
Server Roles
Internet Information Server 6.0 (IIS 6) is the latest incarnation of the Internet services component of Windows Server 2003. Windows Server 2003 is the most recent release of Microsoft's line of server operating systems based on the Windows NT (New Technology) code base. Windows Server 2003 builds on the success of both Windows NT and Windows 2000, while also incorporating certain features and enhancements made available in the desktop operating system Windows XP. Both Windows Server 2003 and XP share the same code base; both are derivatives of the system originally code named Whistler.
WEB RESOURCE
For more information on the history of IIS, visit www.samspublishing.com and enter this book's ISBN number (no hyphens or parenthesis) in the Search field; then click the book cover image to access the book details page. Click the Web Resources link in the More Information section and locate article ID# 020101.
IT'S JUST "IIS"
For the sake of brevity, I refer to Internet Information Server as IIS throughout the rest of the book. When referring to IIS in general, I just use IIS, but when referring to a specific version, I use the corresponding version number as well; that is, IIS 4, IIS 5, or IIS 6.
In many ways, IIS 6 is a complete redevelopment of the IIS platform, but without losing much of the flexibility, power, or feature set of the core IIS product. Much of what you know about IIS?how to manage it, build Web sites, and provide IIS-based services?remains the same.
However, many areas have been updated and expanded, and this has inevitably brought about changes to certain aspects of the administration of your IIS installation.
DOES IT ALL LOOK THE SAME?
Don't be fooled by how similar IIS' administrative interface looks to prior versions?IIS 6 really is brand new under the hood, and the differences make it both more stable and more secure.
