Automate IIS Setup and Features with Powershell

Recent versions of Windows and Windows Server let you install additional features through PowerShell. The IIS Web Server is not installed by default, but you can automate the process by using a Powershell script to install it.

Web Connection ships with a PowerShell script file Install-IIS_Features.ps1 which contains the commands to install IIS with the recommended features needed to run IIS for Web Connection.

Running Install-IIS-Features.ps1

The script is simply a bunch of Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature commands strung together to install the relevant IIS features.

To do this:

• Open a PowerShell Command Prompt as Administrator
• cd
• Run: Install-IIS-Features.ps1

The commands will execute one after the other.

Script Content

For completeness sake here's the content of this file:

# This script installs IIS and the features required to
# run Web Connection.
#
# * Make sure you run this script from a Powershel Admin Prompt!
# * Make sure Powershell Execution Policy is bypassed to run these scripts:
# * YOU MAY HAVE TO RUN THIS COMMAND PRIOR TO RUNNING THIS SCRIPT!
Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-WebServerRole
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-WebServer
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-CommonHttpFeatures
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HttpErrors
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HttpRedirect
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ApplicationDevelopment

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -online -FeatureName NetFx4Extended-ASPNET45
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-NetFxExtensibility45

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HealthAndDiagnostics
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HttpLogging
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-LoggingLibraries
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-RequestMonitor
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HttpTracing
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-Security
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-RequestFiltering
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-Performance
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-WebServerManagementTools
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-IIS6ManagementCompatibility
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-Metabase
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ManagementConsole
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-BasicAuthentication
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-WindowsAuthentication
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-StaticContent
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-DefaultDocument
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-WebSockets
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ApplicationInit
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ISAPIExtensions
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ISAPIFilter
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-HttpCompressionStatic
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName IIS-ASPNET45

There are a few other optional components and setting that I recommend you also install/configure:

# The following optional components require 
# Chocolatey OR Web Platform Installer to install

# Install UrlRewrite Module for Extensionless Urls (optional)
###  & "C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Web Platform Installer\WebpiCmd-x64.exe" /install /Products:UrlRewrite2 /AcceptEULA /SuppressPostFinish
# choco install urlrewrite -y
    
# Install WebDeploy for Deploying to IIS (optional)
### & "C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Web Platform Installer\WebpiCmd-x64.exe" /install /Products:WDeployNoSMO /AcceptEULA /SuppressPostFinish
# choco install webdeploy -y

# Disable Loopback Check on a Windows Server (or Enterprise Win 10)
# Gets around no local Logins on Windows Server
# New-ItemProperty HKLM:\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa -Name "DisableLoopbackCheck" -Value "1" -PropertyType dword


# To list all Windows Features: dism /online /Get-Features
# Get-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online 
# LIST All IIS FEATURES: 
# Get-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online | where FeatureName -like 'IIS-*'

Chocolatey

I highly recommend that you install the Chocolatey Package Manager for new server or any new machine installs in general, to automate the installation of the most common components and some common configuration operations. Chocolatey lets you do unattended installs of most Tools and Components and servers with a single command that can be automated.

For example here's my server installation script:

# Run from ADMIN POWERSHELL PROMPT
# Install Chocolatey 
#Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

choco install disableuac

# Apps
choco install vscode -y
choco install GoogleChrome -y
choco install filezilla -y
choco install 7zip -y
choco install git -y
choco install tortoisegit -y

choco install xplorer2 -y
choco install procexp -y
choco install westwindwebsurge -y
choco install MarkdownMonster -y
choco install deletefiles -y

choco install filezilla.server -y
choco install sql-server-express -y
choco install sql-server-management-studio -y
choco install robo3t -y