With the Windows 2008 server launch date just around the corner I would like to discuss some of the features hosters will be able to offer.

The new version of IIS flaunts a modular architecture, ASP.net integration, .net extensibility, diagnostics, and enhanced security. This post is just the tip of the iceberg on some of the new features.

Modular Architecture

The IIS7 out of the box installation is componentized into 30 independent modules.  Many of these modules allow you to add functionality to your web application without the need to write a single line of code. Other modules add improved functionality to IIS itself.  A good example of this Lego block type architecture is the FASCT CGI component (this is by far my favorite module to date).  Microsoft worked very close with Zend to develop this module as both parties wanted to fiercely improve PHP performance on the IIS platform.  With the FAST CGI Module you can say goodbye to that poor performing php app on IIS.   

I can say with confidence that we currently run IIS7 in production with Kayako Support Suite and it is extremely efficient.  We have always suffered with the challenge of deploying multiple server platforms in order to achieve a specific functionality from a php based application. This is no longer the case thanks to IIS7.   This  also means that “hybrid” developers will finally have a unified development platform.

ASP.net Integration and Extensibility

IIS7 pushes ASP.net functionality up a notch by allowing it to work directly with the core server and not just with ASP.net content types.  In the past ASP.net requests were handled via ISAPI extensions.  This meant ASP.net requests were sent to IIS and then forwarded to an ASP.net ISAPI extension for execution.

In IIS7, ASP.net components plug directly into the IIS request processing pipeline, and execute for all requests regardless of content type.

 Much of the functionality that is available at the ASP.net application layer such as Form Authentication, Roles, and URL Authorization is now available to many other content types such as static files, asp, and PHP pages.

Diagnostics

As windows hosters we have been asked time after by customers to “check server logs” when a web application misbehaves. The sad truth is there are none unless you have built some sort of error handler or diagnostic routine into your application.    FREB (Failed Requests Event Buffering) allows you to look out for error conditions on your web application such as hangs, slow downs, or servers errors (such as 401, 404’s and good old 500’s).

Security

The software giant never forgets about security.  Aside from a reduced surface area and request filtering IIS7 does offer improved security even for the end user (REALLY, I MEAN IT!).

Here is how:

Secure FTP-  As of IIS7 Beta3 the FTP server now supports FTP publishing over SSL (the request list for this feature must have been piled up so high that they finally decided to put it in).

Delegated Administration- It used to be that you either were part of the admin group in order to manage IIS or you could not manage anything at all (unless of course you had the aid of a control panel).  With user delegation you can define who manages what sites on IIS.  The administration can be done by using IIS Manager. The UI even works over HTTPS so there is no need to expose any additional ports while securely managing your server.

I am eager to see how this revamped product will impact the hosting environment.   Although its predecessors did facilitate many tasks for Windows Hosters it always fell short in a few aspects.  IIS7 will most likely hit a homerun with all the new innovative features.

To learn more about IIS7 please visit http://www.iis.net/iis7