"Unable to create a Web for the URL '/' " error message when you install FrontPage 2000 Server Extensions or FrontPage 2002 Server Extensions

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This article was previously published under Q201522

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SYMPTOMS

When you install the FrontPage Server Extensions to a virtual server that you have created, you receive the following error message

Unable to create a Web for the URL "/" because its root directory, path1, falls below the root of another Web in the directory, path2.

where path1 is the path to the home directory of the virtual server where you are trying to install the extensions, and path2 is the path to the home directory of the virtual server that contains path1.

For additional information, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

194475 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/194475/EN-US/ ) FP98: Server Extensions Do Not Support Nested Virtual Roots

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CAUSE

This behavior can occur if one virtual server is nested inside another virtual server, meaning that the content folders for the virtual servers overlap. While this may be a valid setup for your Web server, the FrontPage Server Extensions cannot work properly in this environment.

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RESOLUTION

Configure your virtual servers so that the content folders do not overlap. For example, configure all virtual servers in folders at the same level in the directory structure as the default Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) Wwwroot folder, like this:

C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot\          (typical default Web site on IIS)
C:\Inetpub\Server1\          (virtual server 1)
C:\Inetpub\Server2\          (virtual server 2)

Or, if you have virtual servers configured under the default IIS Wwwroot folder, you can remap the default Web site for IIS to a new folder under the Wwwroot path, like this:

C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot\NewRoot\  (remapped default Web site)
C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot\Server1\  (virtual server 1)
C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot\Server2\  (virtual server 2)

As an alternative to either of the preceding options, you can use different directories and drives on your server for the content folders:

C:\Inetpub\Wwwroot            (typical default Web site on IIS)
C:\WebsSites\Server1\         (virtual server 1)
D:\Users\msbob\Server2\       (virtual server 2)

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MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about creating or configuring virtual servers and settings in Microsoft Internet Information Services, click the following article numbers to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

301392 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/301392/ ) How To Create a Virtual Folder (Subweb) in IIS 4.0 or IIS 5.0

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