Microsoft has rolled out updates to six Internet Information Services (IIS) Extensions. Three are still in beta while three are released to the Web (RTW). Here’s the rundown:

• IIS Application Request Routing 2.0 RC adds support to enhance disk based cache and cache proxy for content delivery networks while increasing Web application reliability and scalability through rule-based routing and load balancing of HTTP server requests.
• IIS Search Engine Optimization Toolkit Beta2 helps Web developers, hosting providers, and Web server administrators to improve their Web site’s relevance in search results by recommending how to make the site content more search engine-friendly.
• IIS URL Rewriter 2.0 RC adds support for outbound response rewriting while enabling Web administrators to create powerful rules to implement URLs that are easier for users to remember and easier for search engines to find.
• IIS Web Deployment Tool RTW simplifies the migration, management, and deployment of IIS Web servers, Web applications, and Web sites.
• IIS Database Manager RTW allows you to easily manage your local and remote databases from within IIS Manager.
• IIS Media Services 3.0 RTW, an integrated HTTP-based media delivery platform, combines all IIS media extensions - including IIS Live Smooth Streaming - and delivers true HD (720p+) streaming for users and real-time logging to measure media investments.

And in addition to the WebsiteSpark announcement, which we covered yesterday, We added other enhancements to the overall Microsoft Web Platform, including the Microsoft Web Platform Installer 2.0 RTW, which provides developers with a simplified, ‘one click’ installation of technologies in the Web stack – including IIS Extensions.

Also, the Windows Web Application Gallery provides access to more than 20 popular, free, and ready to install Web apps to build Web sites and Web applications that run on Windows.

More to come,

Mitch

Subscribe to the TechNet Flash newsletter

The Solution Accelerators team has announced the availability of the Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide for Virtualization updated for Windows Server 2008 R2, which can help customers start their planning and deployment process for virtualization using the Microsoft portfolio. Find detailed documentation and simple flowcharts. Detailed guides are available for designing virtual deployments.

In addition, the Infrastructure and Planning Guide for System Center has been updated for System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2.

More to come,

Mitch

Subscribe to the TechNet Flash newsletter

This is reminder to tune in to The New Efficiency event on September 29, from 9-10:30 AM Pacific Time to see how the soon-to-be released software is already meeting cost and productivity challenges for some early adopters. With Windows 7, Windows Server R2 and Exchange 2010 starting to get adoption, top industry leaders and Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer will debate the role of IT during this economic reset. Can cost savings, productivity and innovation come together to drive business growth? Get a closer look at how real companies are justifying IT investments across desktop, server, network and beyond.  Sign up here.  

More to come,

Mitch

Subscribe to the TechNet Flash newsletter

Small Web developers and designers now have a great new resource in WebsiteSpark, our new program providing software, support and, coming soon, a marketplace to help you grow your business. Web companies with 10 or fewer employees can qualify for the web platform software, professional support and training, and business opportunities through a marketplace that connects an ecosystem of customers, hosters, and complementary partners. Businesses may participate in the program for three years with no cost obligations other than a $100 program fee, payable upon exit.

Also new is the RTM of the Web Platform Installer 2.0, which provides even more features such as the IIS SEO Toolkit, and the Windows Web Application Gallery, now with over 20 ASP.NET and PHP applications. Beginning now and through 2009 all of this will be localized in nine languages.

More to come,

Mitch

Subscribe to the TechNet Flash newsletter

The Sysinternals team recently rolled out two updates:

Process Monitor v2.7
This update to Process Monitor, a system monitoring utility, adds a new option to the process tree dialog that direct it to show just the timeline for displayed events, uses kernel-based thread profiling on Vista and higher for better performance, and includes a number of minor fixes and enhancements.

ProcDump v1.5
ProcDump now includes a new switch that enables the creation of a process dump upon process termination, which can help with troubleshooting unexpected process termination. It also fixes a bug where the -ma switch wouldn’t generate a full dump when combined with -r, the Windows 7-specific process reflection switch.

Be sure to check out Sysinternals Live, a service that enables you to execute Sysinternals tools directly from the Web without hunting for and manually downloading them. Simply enter a tool’s Sysinternals Live path into Windows Explorer or a command prompt as http://live.sysinternals.com/<toolname> or  \\live.sysinternals.com\tools\<toolname>.

You can view the entire Sysinternals Live tools directory in a browser at http://live.sysinternals.com.

More to come,

Mitch

Subscribe to the TechNet Flash newsletter