While you may expect to be able to install IIS 7.0 on Windows Vista Business and Vista Ultimate,
you might be surprised to learn that you can also install IIS 7.0 on Windows Vista Home Premium.
While the Web server included with Visual Studio is good, there's something nice about
developing on the same Web server software your application is going to be deployed on.
While IIS 7.0 is not installed by default on any version of Vista, it's quite simple to install.
Simply open the "Programs and Features" item from your computer's Control Panel and
choose "Turn Windows features on or off." In the resulting dialog box you'll find
a list of Windows' optional features. Simply check the box for "Internet Information Services"
and then select the sub-features you want installed. Make sure you select "ASP.NET"
(not included by default) if you're installing IIS to develop on. Then just click the "OK"
button and sit back while Windows installs IIS for you.
If you haven't made the switch to Windows Vista yet and your main focus is Web development,
Windows Vista Home Premium might just be all you need. You should obviously take a look at the
complete feature list of the different Vista versions before you make a decision (ie. Vista Home Premium
won't join a domain), but if you don't need the additional features of Vista Business or Ultimate,
sticking with Vista Home Premium might just save you a few bucks. Especially since it seems to be
the flavor of Vista most computer makers are shipping by default.
If you have a tip you would like to submit, please send it to:
webmaster@asp101.com.
