| IIS (Internet Information Server) is a group of Internet
servers (including a Web or Hypertext Transfer Protocol server
and a File Transfer Protocol server) with additional capabilities
for Microsoft's Windows NT and Windows 2000 Server operating
systems. IIS is Microsoft's entry to compete in the Internet
server market that is also addressed by Apache, Sun Microsystems,
O'Reilly, and others. With IIS, Microsoft includes a set of
programs for building and administering Web sites, a search
engine, and support for writing Web-based applications that
access databases. Microsoft points out that IIS is tightly
integrated with the Windows NT and 2000 Servers in a number
of ways, resulting in faster Web page serving.
A typical company that buys IIS can create pages for Web
sites using Microsoft's Front Page product (with its WYSIWYG
user interface). Web developers can use Microsoft's Active
Server Page (ASP)technology, which means that applications
- including ActiveX controls - can be imbedded in Web pages
that modify the content sent back to users. Developers can
also write programs that filter requests and get the correct
Web pages for different users by using Microsoft's Internet
Server Application Program Interface (ISAPI) interface.
ASPs and ISAPI programs run more efficiently than common
gateway interface (CGI) and server-side include (SSI) programs,
two current technologies. (However, there are comparable
interfaces on other platforms.)
Microsoft includes special capabilities for server administrators
designed to appeal to Internet service providers (ISPs).
It includes a single window (or "console") from
which all services and users can be administered. It's designed
to be easy to add components as snap-ins that you didn't
initially install. The administrative windows can be customized
for access by individual customers.
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