IIS Virtual Directory Woes

[Scott M.]

I didn't get a resolution to this in my earlier post, so I'll try again:

System:

Windows XP Pro. (SP2) with IIS installed and running PRIOR to VS 2008 Pro.
installation.
VS 2008 Pro. (full installation).
Installations and testing is all done via an Administrator account.

If I simply create a new ASP .NET Web Application Project (WAP) on my local
file system and then go into the project properties and switch the web
server over to IIS and click the "Create Virtual Directory" button, the page
will not run and will eror out.

I can overcome this by going into IIS and turning on Integrated Windows
Authentication and adding "default.aspx" to the default document list.

My question is, why do I have to set these items up manually? ASP .NET is
correctly installed into IIS (the ASP .NET tab is present in IIS
configuration settings).

Is anyone else experiencing this? BTW-This is not an isolated incident, I
get this behavior EVERY time and on EVERY machine I try it on.

 

[Anthony Jones]

I didn't get a resolution to this in my earlier post, so I'll try again:

System:

Windows XP Pro. (SP2) with IIS installed and running PRIOR to VS 2008 Pro.
installation.
VS 2008 Pro. (full installation).
Installations and testing is all done via an Administrator account.

If I simply create a new ASP .NET Web Application Project (WAP) on my local
file system and then go into the project properties and switch the web
server over to IIS and click the "Create Virtual Directory" button, the page
will not run and will eror out.

I can overcome this by going into IIS and turning on Integrated Windows
Authentication and adding "default.aspx" to the default document list.

My question is, why do I have to set these items up manually? ASP .NET is
correctly installed into IIS (the ASP .NET tab is present in IIS
configuration settings).

Is anyone else experiencing this? BTW-This is not an isolated incident, I
get this behavior EVERY time and on EVERY machine I try it on.

Since IIS 5.1 predates .NET its default documents list would not include a
default.aspx. I haven't got a vanilla XP to prove that ASP.NET would add it
to the list for you. Although it does look like you've proved that it
doesn't.

As to intergrated windows authentication that just sounds like you haven't
granted the IUSR_ account access to the folder you pointing your virtual
directory at.

 

[Scott M.]

Thanks Anthony, but that doesn't help me move forward on the issue.

I've just done a test. If I go into IIS Manger and create a virtual
directory there, both the default.aspx document and the Integrated Windows
Authentication are set as they should be. In addition, the site has the ASP
..NET configuration tab in the site's properties.

If I create a new ASP .NET Web Application Project from Visual Studio 2008,
and I go into the project properties and change over to IIS, rather than the
ASP .NET development server, I'm FORCED to ask VS .NET to create the virtual
directory for me and it doesn't set these two items I've mentioned.

Clearly ASP .NET is installed on IIS (and yes, I have run aspnet_regiis -i
in the past to test if that would help). And it would seem that because it
is installed, IIS is aware of default.aspx pages as it does add that to the
document list if I make the virtual directory myself.

This is a reproduceable problem that I encounter on every XP machine I try
it on.

How can nobody else be having this issue?

 

[Rain]

The reason other ppl are probably not reporting is or complaining is that
they dont use it this way. Since VS2005, I dont think I have ever bothered
creating a virtual directory this way. I know that doesent help, but perhaps
it may offer some insight into your last comment.

Cheers - Rain

Thanks Anthony, but that doesn't help me move forward on the issue.

I've just done a test. If I go into IIS Manger and create a virtual
directory there, both the default.aspx document and the Integrated Windows
Authentication are set as they should be. In addition, the site has the
ASP .NET configuration tab in the site's properties.

If I create a new ASP .NET Web Application Project from Visual Studio
2008, and I go into the project properties and change over to IIS, rather
than the ASP .NET development server, I'm FORCED to ask VS .NET to create
the virtual directory for me and it doesn't set these two items I've
mentioned.

Clearly ASP .NET is installed on IIS (and yes, I have run aspnet_regiis -i
in the past to test if that would help). And it would seem that because
it is installed, IIS is aware of default.aspx pages as it does add that to
the document list if I make the virtual directory myself.

This is a reproduceable problem that I encounter on every XP machine I try
it on.

How can nobody else be having this issue?

 

[Scott M.]

That doesn't make any sense. To use a virtual directory with VS, you MUST
create it from WITHIN Visual Studio. If you make the virtual directory
ahead of time from IIS (which creates it properly), VS will tell you that
the virtual directory could not be created, but at the same time it will
also tell you that you must create the directory, so you have no choice but
to make it via VS.

How do you setup an IIS virtual directory that Visual Studio will let you
run your WAP against?

-Scott

The reason other ppl are probably not reporting is or complaining is that
they dont use it this way. Since VS2005, I dont think I have ever bothered
creating a virtual directory this way. I know that doesent help, but
perhaps it may offer some insight into your last comment.

Cheers - Rain

 

[Ben Amada]

That doesn't make any sense. To use a virtual directory with VS, you MUST
create it from WITHIN Visual Studio. If you make the virtual directory
ahead of time from IIS (which creates it properly), VS will tell you that
the virtual directory could not be created, but at the same time it will
also tell you that you must create the directory, so you have no choice
but to make it via VS.

How do you setup an IIS virtual directory that Visual Studio will let you
run your WAP against?

In VS2008 on Vista, if I go to the Web tab in the project properties of a
WAP project, I can select "Use IIS Web Server" and manually enter the URL of
a virtual directory I created ahead of time. Visual Studio doesn't complain
when I save it (it works too when I run it).

If I enter an invalid URL, however, VS complains asking me if I want it to
create the virtual directory. So, my guess would be that you're not
entering a valid pre-created URL? What you enter into the Project Url box
should look something like:

http://localhost/your-virtual-directory-name

 

[Scott M.]

I'm not using Vista, but that shouldn't change VS's behavior.

When I am in a WAP project settings and switch over to the IIS setting, I
cannot save without being prompted to create the virtual directory. If I do
create it and it doesn't exist, it will be created, but with the two
problems I've been discussing. If I created it ahead of time, Visual Studio
won't let me create it again and yet it won't let me get out of that dialog
without creating it - so the bottom line is that you MUST create the virtual
directory within VS, leaving me with a virtual directory that is
incompletely setup.

I am very well-versed in virtual directories, so I know what I'm entering
into Visual Studio is correct.