The metabase can be modified by configuring values through the use of administration tools such as the IIS snap-in and Internet Services Manager (HTML). The metabase can also be modified programmatically by configuring values through the use of the IIS Admin Objects and the IIS Admin Base Object.
For information about the structure of the metabase, metabase keys and paths, property inheritance, and metabase security, see Introduction to the IIS Metabase.
For information on using the IIS Admin Objects and the IIS Admin Base Object to programmatically administer IIS, see Administering IIS Programmatically.
For comprehensive reference information on all configurable metabase properties, see Administration Property Reference.
Caution Configuring properties in the metabase incorrectly can cause problems, including the failure of a Web site or FTP site. If you make mistakes, your Web site or FTP site's configuration could be damaged. You should edit metabase properties only for settings that you cannot adjust in the IIS snap-in or Internet Services Manager (HTML), and use caution whenever you edit the metabase directly.
The namespace specifies the location of metabase properties. It is organized as follows:
LM/Service/Website/Root/virtual directory/dir/file
Where LM = Local Machine
Service = Internet Service (W3SVC or MSFTPSVC)
Website = Web site
Root = virtual directory root
virtual directory = virtual directory
dir = directory
file = file
For example, if the namespace of the metabase path
LM/W3SVC/Website1/Root
is associated with the path
C:\Inetpub\wwwroot
then the URL
http://domain.com/default.htm
could be mapped to the physical file path
C:\Inetpub\wwwroot\default.htm
Metabase properties configured at higher levels, such as the Web site level, can be passed on, or inherited, by the lower levels, such as the directory level. These inherited properties can be edited individually at the lower level as well. Once a property has been changed on an individual server, directory, or file, changes to the settings at the higher level will not automatically override the lower-level individual setting.