IIS ISAPI Rewrite Walkthrough

[Rebirth Studios]

I need someone to walk me through how to use the ISAPI rewrite for IIS.

Currently, it has been "setup" by my IT department and I uploaded my httpd.ini file and basically nothing happened.

Do services need to be restarted when doing this or reset something? (FYI - I don't have IIS access)

Am I uploading the right file, is the code right, etc?

RewriteRule /sitemap.html /index.html [RP, I]

Could an .htaccess file be used instead?

Thanks

[sbauer]

I need someone to walk me through how to use the ISAPI rewrite for IIS.

Currently, it has been "setup" by my IT department and I uploaded my httpd.ini file and basically nothing happened.

Do services need to be restarted when doing this or reset something? (FYI - I don't have IIS access)

Am I uploading the right file, is the code right, etc?

RewriteRule /sitemap.html /index.html [RP, I]

Could an .htaccess file be used instead?

Thanks

What version are you using? lite or full?

[Rebirth Studios]

lite

[sbauer]

lite

Where did you put the ini file? Lite only allows a global config, not a per-site config. If you're putting it in your site root, it won't work. I believe you need to put it in the same directory as the filter.

[Rebirth Studios]

I dropped it in the root, I don't believe I have access to go anywhere deeper, so what is the remedy; would we need to purchase the full version, and if so, how would that work differently?

[sbauer]

I dropped it in the root, I don't believe I have access to go anywhere deeper, so what is the remedy; would we need to purchase the full version, and if so, how would that work differently?

You don't need to purchase a full version if you're ok with one global configuration (one site). If you're ok with it, then get your IT department to give you more access or tell them to drop it in the directory whenever you make a change.

If you get the full version, you should be able to drop the file into the root of the site.

[Rebirth Studios]

Since it's an .ini file, does this require resetting/restarting anything?

[sbauer]

Since it's an .ini file, does this require resetting/restarting anything?

I don't believe that's required. From what I remember it detects changes and automatically reloads the rules.

[StanB]

Which version are you using? v2 or v3? The syntax of your rule is v2 compatible.

[Rebirth Studios]

v3

[StanB]

If you want to use this code

RewriteRule /sitemap.html /index.html [RP, I]

you must use v2.

The v3 you are using, uses apache mod_rewrite like syntax and you should change the configuration like this

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule /sitemap.html /index.html [R=301,NC]

Although, V2 has been very stabile for years and is a very reliable product, unfortunatelly v3 appears to be quite unstable with many complaints in the product's forum, and I wouldn't use it in production environments. I recommend that you either switch to v2, or if you wish to use apache like syntax, switch to IIS mod-rewrite, which is rock solid and better product overall. Unfortunatelly, this last has no free version.

As for using .htaccess files, only the paid version of IIS mod-rewrite pro and isapirewrite full v3 support .htaccess.

[Rebirth Studios]

The v3 you are using, uses apache mod_rewrite like syntax and you should change the configuration like this

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule /sitemap.html /index.html [R=301,NC]

Ok, so if I stick with v3 and use the code like you suggest, can I make this change from the root folder, where the website files reside or would I need deeper access?

What is the file called, and would anything need to be reset or restarted after changing the file?

Also, when you mentioned stability, what kind of adverse affects would those be, and which version would best suit our setup (Windows 2008, IIS7) ?

Thanks!

[StanB]

I have already answered your first question. Only IIS Mod-Rewrite Pro and ISAPI Rewrite FULL v3 support distributed configuration files (.htaccess). Both product versions require $$. All other modules available out there support single configuration file and need admin access.

Both products monitor configuration changes. No need to reset anything.

You might want to visit Helicon's support forum and have a look at recent posts discussing stability issues with ISAPI rewrite v3. I personally experienced hangs when testing ISAPI rewrite v3 with errors like

A process serving application pool 'DefaultAppPool' suffered a fatal communication error with the World Wide Web Publishing Service

which simply means app pool crash...

ISAPI Rewrite V2 is very stable, but it's old stuff. IIS Mod-Rewrite is rock solid too and overall better product, but quality has its price. The pro version which is good for your requirements costs some 150 bucks. They also have a cheaper version for 70 or so, but lacks .htaccess support. ISAPI rewrite full is 100 bucks.

[Rebirth Studios]

Ok, we're using the v3 Full Demo, but have had no success...

I tried the .htaccess method with the code:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^sitemap\.shtml$ index.shtml [R=301,NC]

Does IIS have to be configured to accept .htaccess files somehow?

Is there a way to use httpd.ini instead or does it have to be .htaccess?

[StanB]

This rule is suitable for .htaccess and it should have worked.

IIS doesn't know anything about .htaccess, so there is nothing to tune there.

[Rebirth Studios]

Are there other settings which could negate the .htaccess from working?

Without having administrative access, how can I troubleshoot?

Thanks