HOW TO: Start and Stop Individual Web Sites in IIS

This article describes the differences between starting and stopping Web sites in both Apache and IIS and describes how to control the Web site status in Internet Information Services (IIS).

Comparing Apache Web Site Controls to IIS Web Site Controls

When you use Apache, you can control the Web server by using the Apachectl utility. You can use this utility to start, stop, and restart the Web server (typically, you use this tool after you used change configurations). To turn off or turn on individual Web sites, you have to modify the configuration file, and then restart the whole Web server process. When you do so, other sites that are hosted by the same server are affected.

When you use IIS, each Web site is treated individually. As a result, you can start and stop an individual Web site without affecting the whole server. You also do not have to restart the Web server when you change a configuration. If you change a configuration, the changes take effect immediately. If you only want to temporarily pause the server for a single Web site, you can pause and resume the site without performing a complete shutdown or startup sequence.

Starting an Individual Web Site

You can start an individual Web site without affecting the operation of any other Web site that is being that is supported by a server that is maintained by Internet Services Manager.

To start an individual Web site that has previously been stopped:

1. Log on to the Web server computer as an administrator.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Internet Services Manager.
4. Right-click the Web site that you want to start in the left pane, and then click Start.

Stopping an Individual Web Site

You can stop an individual Web site without affecting the operation of any other Web site that is supported by a server that is maintained by Internet Services Manager.

To stop an individual Web site:

1. Log on to the Web server computer as an administrator.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Internet Services Manager.
4. Right-click the Web site that you want to stop in the left pane, and then click Stop.

Pausing and Resuming an Individual Web Site

If you pause and resume a Web site, IIS stops accepting requests or stops processing any existing requests. If you pause a Web site, you can temporarily reduce the load on a computer or make significant changes to the folder structure or the document structure.

To pause or resume an individual Web site:

1. Log on to the Web server computer as an administrator.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Internet Services Manager.
4. Right-click the Web site that you want to pause in the left pane, and then click Pause.

For additional information about performing maintenance tasks after a UNIX to Windows migration, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: