HOW TO: Index ASP.NET Content by Using Microsoft Index Server

On a Microsoft Windows 2000-based system (earlier than Service Pack 3), Microsoft Index Server does not, by default, index ASP.NET content types, such as .aspx and .ascx files.

If you (as an administrator) want to enable indexing of ASP.NET content types, use the contents of the registry file included in the following section of this article. This file associates .aspx files and .ascx files with the Index Server HTML filter, and therefore ensures that the content is filtered correctly and the visual content is displayed without revealing source code.

Use Registry Editor to Index ASP.NET Content Types

To use Registry Editor to associate .aspx files and .ascx files with the Index Server HTML filter, follow these steps.

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

1. Paste the following text into a text document:

      REGEDIT4
   
      [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.aspx\PersistentHandler]
      @="{eec97550-47a9-11cf-b952-00aa0051fe20}"
   
      [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.ascx\PersistentHandler]
      @="{eec97550-47a9-11cf-b952-00aa0051fe20}"
   					

2. Rename the file with a .reg extension, and then execute the newly created .reg file.
3. Restart the server.
4. Stop the Index Server service.
5. Delete the contents of the Catalog.wci folder associated with the catalog that you are working on.
6. Restart the Index Server service, and then allow the catalog to fully rebuild.

More Information

Index Server can be configured to index unknown content types, in which case, ASP.NET content will be indexed by default, with or without the registry entries. If the entries are present, the correct filtering will be performed for .aspx and .ascx files. Otherwise, these files will be treated as text, which is generally not optimal for a site that is set up to perform indexing. Note that regardless of the registry settings, other ASP.NET content types (for example, .asmx files and .config files) are not handled by the HTML filter. If a Web site is configured to index these content types, you should exercise care to limit search queries so that they do not contain these types and inadvertently expose application data or source material.

Note that Windows 2000 Service Pack 3, Microsoft Windows XP, and Microsoft Windows Server contain the registry entries that associate .aspx and .ascx to the Index Server HTML filter by default.