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Creating Web Virtual Directories Using Iisvdir.vbs

  • Article

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1

You can use the command-line script Iisvdir.vbs, which is stored in systemroot\System32, to create a new Web virtual directory on local or remote computers running a member of the Windows Server 2003 family with IIS 6.0. This command does not create or destroy content, but it sets up the virtual directory structure and IIS configuration files.

When you use Iisvdir.vbs to create a new Web virtual directory, you specify only the basic properties that are needed to create the site and identify its contents. Iisvdir.vbs uses the same default properties that IIS Manager uses when establishing new virtual directories, and it adheres to the same rules for inheriting properties. To configure the more advanced properties of the virtual directory, use IIS Manager.

Important

You must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer to run scripts and executables. As a security best practice, log on to your computer by using an account that is not in the Administrators group, and then use the runas command to run your script or executable as an administrator. At a command prompt, type runas /profile /User:MyComputer</STRONG>Administrator cmd to open a command window with administrator rights and then type cscript.exe ScriptName (include the script's full path and any parameters).

This topic includes the following information:

  • Syntax: The order in which you type a command and any arguments and options that follow it.

  • Parameters: The values that are given to variables in the command.

  • Examples: Sample code and an explanation of the results.

Syntax

iisvdir /create WebSite[/VirtualPath] Name PhysicalPath [/s Computer [/u [Domain\]User /p Password]]

Parameters

WebSite

Required. Specifies the descriptive name, or the metabase path, of the Web site.

VirtualPath

Specifies a path, if necessary, to the virtual directory within the Web site. This parameter is required when the virtual directory is not located at the root of the Web site.

Name

Required. Specifies a name for the virtual directory. Virtual directory names do not have to be unique. However, when a Web site includes a virtual directory and a physical directory with the same name, the physical directory will not be visible on the Internet.

PhysicalPath

Specifies a physical directory where the content for the virtual directory resides. You must specify a path on the local computer, such as C:\Project\HTML. If the specified directory does not exist, iisvdir will create it.

/s Computer

Runs the script on the specified remote computer. Type the computer name or IP address without backslashes. The default is the local computer.

/u [Domain\]User

Runs the script with the permissions of the specified user account. This account must be a member of the Administrators group on the remote computer. By default, the script runs with the permissions of the current user of the local computer.

/p Password

Specifies the password of the user account that is specified in the /u parameter.

Note

The WebSite (or WebSite/VirtualPath), Name, and PhysicalPath parameters must always appear in the specified order on the command line. Otherwise, Iisvdir.vbs does not interpret the information correctly.

Examples

Example 1:

The following example creates the "Insurance" virtual directory at the root of the "Finance" Web site on the local computer. It associates the directory with content that is currently stored in the C:\Projects\Insurance\HTML directory.

iisvdir /create Finance Insurance c:\projects\insurance\html

In response, iisvdir displays the following success message along with the basic properties of the new virtual directory. In this example, "Virtual Path" reflects the virtual directory structure, "ROOT" represents the physical directory where the content resides, and "Metabase Path" represents the metabase key that is assigned by IIS.

Connecting to server ...Done.

Virtual Path = Finance/Insurance

ROOT = c:\projects\insurance\html

Metabase Path = W3SVC/1509060625/ROOT/Insurance

Example 2:

The following example creates the "Updates" virtual subdirectory on the "Finance" Web site on the remote computer. The command uses the metabase path of the "Finance" Web site, "W3SVC/1509060625", to identify the Web site, and it indicates the virtual path, "Finance/Insurance", by appending it to the Web site name. In addition, the command associates the "Updates" directory with content that is stored in C:\Newstuff\Web on the remote computer.

The example also uses the /s parameter to identify the remote computer, as well as the /u and /p parameters to run Iisvdir.vbs with the permissions of the user's administrator account.

iisvdir /create W3SVC/1509060625/Insurance Updates C:\Newstuff\Web /s SVR01 /u Admin01 /p p@SSw#rD2

In response, iisvdir displays the basic properties of the new Web site.

Connecting to server ...

Virtual Path = Finance/Insurance/Updates

ROOT = C:\Newstuff\Web

Metabase Path = W3SVC/1509060625/ROOT/Insurance/Updates