MSXML with WinHTTP
MSXML installs and depends upon Microsoft® Windows® HTTP Services (WinHTTP). WinHTTP is a server-side component that provides an updated Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) stack for developing server-based applications for the Web.
MSXML uses WinHTTP for the ServerXMLHTTP
object, a server-side interface for handling HTTP requests. This object differs from the XMLHTTP
object, which performs in a similar role as a client-side interface on most computers running Windows. The primary difference between these two interfaces is that XMLHTTP
cannot be used in a server environment. This is because it depends upon the WinInet component, which was not designed to provide adequate performance in server-side use.
WinHTTP provides support for the following technologies that you may be using in a Web-based application:
Active Server Pages (ASP)
Internet Server Application Programming Interface (ISAPI) extensions for Internet Information Services (IIS)
Note
WinHTTP 5.1 ships with Windows Server 2003. This version of WinHTTP will work side-by-side with earlier versions such as WinHTTP 5.0 that were available in Windows 2000.