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Overview of Migrating IIS Web Sites to IIS 6.0

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

You begin the migration process by determining the compatibility of your existing Web sites and applications with IIS 6.0 and the Microsoft® Windows® Server 2003, Standard Edition; Windows® Server 2003, Enterprise Edition; Windows® Server 2003, Datacenter Edition; or Windows® Server 2003, Web Edition operating system. Next, you install Windows Server 2003 and IIS 6.0 on the target server, which is the server that will host your Web sites after migration. Then, you migrate the Web site content and configuration settings from the source server, which is a server running the Microsoft Windows NT® Server 4.0 operating system and IIS 4.0 or the Windows 2000 Server operating system and IIS 5.0, to the target server.

After the migration of your Web site content, you customize the configuration of IIS 6.0, based on your Web sites and applications. Finally, after you have completed the customization of IIS 6.0, you back up the target server, enable client access to the Web sites and applications on the target server, and decommission the source server.

The process in this section focuses on transferring the Web site content and configuration settings, and not on the details of how to make application code changes in dynamic content. If your Web sites contain only static content, you can most likely complete the migration process in a few simple steps. However, if your IIS Web sites contain dynamic content, such as Active Server Pages (ASP), ASP.NET, or Common Gateway Interface (CGI) scripts, you might need to modify the code in the dynamic content separately. In addition, any provisioning scripts or setup programs for your existing Web sites and applications might need to be modified after the migration process is complete. Ensure that you test any modifications after the migration process is complete. For more information about potential modifications, see Preparing for Migration later in this section.

Dependencies

Also, if the existing Web sites and applications depend on software other than the Windows operating system and IIS, the complexity of the migration process increases. For example, the process for migrating a Web server that hosts Web sites and applications that were designed to run on Windows 2000 Server and IIS 5.0 is relatively simple. On the other hand, the process for migrating a Web server that hosts Web sites, applications, and other software — such as Microsoft Commerce Server, Microsoft BizTalk® Server, monitoring software, custom applications, or other non-Microsoft software — is more difficult because all of the software must be compatible with Windows Server 2003 and IIS 6.0.

In some cases, you can simplify the Web site migration process by using the IIS 6.0 Migration Tool. For more information about using the IIS 6.0 Migration Tool, see Preparing for Migration later in this section.