PRB: Removing IIS 6.0 Removes Metabase History Folder (311641)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Internet Information Services version 6.0
This article was previously published under Q311641

SYMPTOMS

When you remove the Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0, the History folder that stores automated versioned copies of the Metabase.xml and Mbschema.xml files is deleted.

CAUSE

The IIS uninstaller removes any computer created metabase configuration files. This is provided as a security feature.

RESOLUTION

WARNING: If you edit the metabase incorrectly, you can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall any product that uses the metabase. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems that result if you incorrectly edit the metabase can be solved. Edit the metabase at your own risk.

NOTE: Always back up the metabase before you edit it.

To resolve this problem, back up the metabase by using Configuration Backup/Restore. You can create either a secure backup that requires a password or a non-secure backup that does not require a password.

NOTE: You must have administrative rights to create the backup. To keep security risks low, log on to your computer by using an account that is not in the Administrators group, and then use the Run As command to run the IIS Manager as an administrator, as follows:

runas /user: administrative_accountname "mmc %windir%\system32\inetsrv\iis.msc"

To create a secure backup (password required):

  1. In IIS Manager, click the Computer icon under Internet Information Services.
  2. On the Action menu, point to All Tasks, and then click Backup/Restore Configuration.
  3. Click Create Backup.
  4. Type a name for the backup file in the Configuration Backup Name box.
  5. Click to select the Encrypt backup using password check box, type a password in the Password text box, and then type the same password in the Confirm password text box.
  6. Click OK, and then click Close.
To create a non-secure backup (password not required):

  1. In IIS Manager, click the Computer icon under Internet Information Services.
  2. On the Action menu, point to All Tasks, and then click Backup/Restore Configuration.
  3. Click Create Backup.
  4. Type a name for the backup file in the Configuration Backup Name box.
  5. Click OK, and then click Close.

STATUS

This behavior is by design.

MORE INFORMATION

WARNING: If you edit the metabase incorrectly, you can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall any product that uses the metabase. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems that result if you incorrectly edit the metabase can be solved. Edit the metabase at your own risk.

NOTE: Always back up the metabase before you edit it.

With the Configuration Backup/Restore feature, you can create complete backup copies of the IIS metabase. With the metabase backup files, you can restore your metabase configuration and schema data if your metabase becomes corrupted. Backup files can be restored either to the computer on which the backup was made or to other installations of the Microsoft Windows Server family.

The metabase History feature creates a new metabase file with a unique version number and saves a copy of the file in the History folder. In this way, the metabase History feature automatically keeps track of metabase changes that are saved to the disk. Each history file is then available if you have to restore the MetaBase.xml and MBSchema.xml files from History folder, edit the MetaBase.xml file while IIS is running, and troubleshoot event log errors. By default, the metabase History feature is enabled.

The History folder is a file system folder. Only users who are members of the Administrators group can view these copies. The location of the History folder is: 
%windir%\System32\Inetsrv\History
A history file pair is made up of a Metabase.xml file and a Mbschema.xml file of the same major and minor version numbers.

To disable the metabase History feature, set the value of the EnableHistory property to 0 (zero). To enable metabase history, either set the value of the EnableHistory property to 1 or remove the EnableHistory property from Metabase.xml.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:6/29/2004
Keywords:kbprb KB311641
©2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.