Master IIS Web Server: Complete Course Outline (Beginner to Advanced 2025)

🌐 IIS Web Server Course Outline (Beginner to Advanced, Latest Features 2025)

📌 Introduction

Microsoft IIS (Internet Information Services) is a powerful web server used to host websites, web applications, and services on Windows servers. Mastering IIS is essential for developers and system administrators to ensure secure, optimized, and scalable web hosting. This course covers IIS from fundamentals to advanced configurations, including security, performance optimization, and integration with modern application stacks.

📘 Detailed Course Outline

Module 1: Introduction to IIS

What is IIS and its role in web hosting
IIS versions overview (up to IIS 10 / Windows Server 2022/2025)
IIS architecture and components
Installing IIS on Windows Server and Windows 10/11
Overview of IIS Manager

Module 2: Basic IIS Configuration

Managing application pools
Creating and managing websites
Configuring bindings (HTTP, HTTPS, host headers)
Default documents and directory browsing
Virtual directories and aliases

Module 3: Working with Application Pools

Understanding App Pool isolation
.NET CLR versions and pipeline modes
Recycling and idle timeout settings
Monitoring App Pool health
Configuring identity and permissions

Module 4: IIS Security Fundamentals

Authentication methods (Anonymous, Windows, Basic, Digest)
Authorization rules
SSL/TLS configuration and HTTPS
Request filtering and URL authorization
Securing IIS against common attacks (XSS, SQLi)

Module 5: Logging, Monitoring & Diagnostics

IIS logging and log file formats
Monitoring request and performance statistics
Failed request tracing
Event Viewer integration
Using Performance Monitor (PerfMon) with IIS

Module 6: Advanced IIS Features

Load balancing with IIS ARR (Application Request Routing)
Reverse proxy configuration
Caching strategies (Output caching, Dynamic caching)
Compression (static & dynamic content)
Custom error pages

Module 7: Application Deployment & Management

Deploying ASP.NET and .NET Core applications
Configuring web.config
Managing MIME types and handlers
Hot deployment and application restarts
Automating deployment with Web Deploy

Module 8: IIS & Modern Web Technologies

Hosting Node.js, Python, PHP applications on IIS
Integrating IIS with Azure and cloud platforms
Configuring WebSockets
URL Rewrite Module & SEO-friendly URLs
Content Delivery Optimization (CDN, caching)

Module 9: High Availability & Performance

Scaling IIS for high traffic
Web Farms and ARR load balancing
Failover and redundancy strategies
Connection limits and throttling
Performance tuning for Windows Server and IIS

Module 10: Latest IIS Features (2024–2025 Updates)

Support for HTTP/2 and HTTP/3
Enhanced security protocols (TLS 1.3)
Containerized IIS hosting (Docker Windows Containers)
IIS integration with DevOps pipelines
Advanced monitoring and AI-assisted diagnostics
Support for modern .NET 8 and ASP.NET Core 8 apps

Module 11: Troubleshooting & Best Practices

Common IIS errors and their resolution
Debugging applications with IIS logs
Backup and restore IIS configuration
IIS hardening best practices
Maintaining uptime and reliability

📌 Conclusion

Mastering IIS enables developers and system administrators to host, secure, and optimize web applications efficiently. With this roadmap, learners progress from basic IIS setup to advanced deployment, security, performance tuning, and cloud integration, including the latest 2024–2025 features. This knowledge is critical for modern web hosting and enterprise environments.