CODEWITHSUNDEEP
c#.netwindows-10directoryservices
user5903880
user5903880

Reputation: 102

Stand alone DirectoryServices.DirectoryEntry()

I'm on a stand alone Windows 10 laptop and NOT running AD LDS or any other active directory services. I'm running IIS.

I'm trying to deeply understand what this line of code is doing and more importantly, how.

DirectoryEntry e3 = new DirectoryEntry(@"IIS://localhost/W3SVC/1/Root");

Does a windows OS fake in some sort of resolution for this method in absence of active directory?

Upvotes: 0

Views: 544

Answers (1)

Steve
Steve

Reputation: 923

1) First take care to note if you mean pre/port IIS7. With and after IIS7 many things changed yet, all to much, they still look alike. But there are important differences.

2) MAKE SURE you are at least running in administrative mode

run as administrator

~ or doing something better.

3) Look into .net's DirectoryServices()/DirectoryEntry() but also Microsoft.Web.Administration.ServerManager(). This is probably where you can do 90% of all you are attempting.

4) There is a windows tool cmdline exe (windows/syswow64[system32]/inetsvr/appcmd.exe) that is wonderfully helpful ~ in fact, if it is an option for your needs/environment, you might prefer to create a cmd script for all that you are trying to do. I suggest first learn this tool, then use it to extract out a lot of the IIS/Site metadata to explore what & where you are trying to get to. https://www.iis.net/configreference/system.applicationhost/applicationpools

5) Powershell has a snapin, certainly on server with IIS installed, maybe on workstations. I don't use a lot of powershell so the most i will say about that is the snapin is called WebAdministration and/or iisConsole. You may need to/prefer to manually register the snapin each time you run your script OR you might automatically register the snapin by using the IIS powershell management console.

6) For any above option always remember #2 ~ be certain you are at least running in administrative mode.

7) I know you certainly are playing in the land of IIS's metadata database ~ not the registry so much.

Local workstation: The exact mechanics when you are local to the IIS instance? I'm not sure. You might be accessing the metadata directly, you might be getting to the metadata via the IIS service, or you might be accessing the Server.exe Server service, or something else.

Remote server w/o LDAP: If you are querying a remote server not in an active directory? same as a workstation.

Remote server w/ LDAP: If you are querying a server in an AD you almost certainly are hitting the AD/LDAP service. Of course, how you are doing so might technically be via a segregate such as server.exe service running on that remote.

-- The end game is appcmd.exe, powershell, or c# Microsoft.Web.Administration, DirectoryServer(), all probably come close to doing the same thing in the background. But these are your interfaces to access that background so you don't need to think so much about the deeper implementation.

I hope this helps everyone! Up vote it is you like this answer.

Upvotes: 1

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