How to implement IIS authentication settings
I have installed a standalone IIS server on a Windows 2000 system. How can I switch off the authentication window that pops up on a remote computer when trying to access the page?

    Requires Free Membership to View

    SearchSecurity.com members gain immediate and unlimited access to breaking industry news, virus alerts, new hacker threats, highly focused security newsletters, and more -- all at no cost. Join me on SearchSecurity.com today!

    Michael S. Mimoso, Editorial Director

    By submitting your registration information to SearchSecurity.com you agree to receive email communications from TechTarget and TechTarget partners. We encourage you to read our Privacy Policy which contains important disclosures about how we collect and use your registration and other information. If you reside outside of the United States, by submitting this registration information you consent to having your personal data transferred to and processed in the United States. Your use of SearchSecurity.com is governed by our Terms of Use. You may contact us at webmaster@TechTarget.com.

This depends on what you're trying to do. If you want to allow open access to a Web site hosted on your Internet Information Services (IIS), you'll need to check two settings on the server to see which is blocking the site.

There are two levels of authentication for an IIS server hosted on Windows 2000: Web authentication and New Technology File System (NTFS) permissions.

IIS authentication is set through the Internet Service Manager (ISM), which can be accessed from the server's Administrative Tools menu. Under the Directory Security tab, there are a variety of authentication options that can be checked off. These include options for Basic Authentication, Digest Authentication, as well as Integrated Windows Authentication.

The ISM allows more than one type of authentication to be selected. The pop-up window you describe could be a Basic or Digest authentication window, so make sure these two options are deselected.

The other reason for the authentication window issue could be that the NTFS permissions in the server's root directory may have been set to restrict access. This directory is usually located here: C:Inetpubwwwroot. If you want to remove any logon windows or have open access, go to this location and check the Everyone box; this will allow anyone to have free access to the directory.

From the perspective of the Windows 2000 machine itself, these Web server directories are just like any other directory on the server and can be configured separately.

More information:

  • Michael Cobb explains how to create access rules and configure IIS server permissions.
  • Using a different Web server? Learn some non-IIS best practices.
  • This was first published in March 2007