How to Connect to the Server using Microsoft IIS Manager

 Note that before you can use IIS Manager, you must grant permission to the user who is going to connect.  Permissions are assigned in the Control Panel.  See this Knowledge Base article for user assignment instructions

For older versions of Windows (Server 2003, XP, etc.), you can download IIS Manager and run the appropriate bit-version of the installer to install it.

For newer versions of Windows (Vista, 7, and higher), you can install IIS Manager by enabling IIS Management Console through the Windows Control Panel.  Open your computer's control panel and select Programs and Features.  If you don't see it, make sure you change the View by: to something with icons.  On your left, you should see Turn Windows features on or off.  Click on it.


Now navigate to Internet Information Services > Web Management Tools > IIS Management Console.  Check it and then click on OK.


You can now run IIS Manager by typing it in your computer's search tool.  For most systems, that's all you'll need to do, but for some versions of Windows, you'll need to perform an additional step because the Connect to a Site... option is unavailable.


If you notice that the globe icon above is greyed out or the Connect to a Site... option is missing, then you'll need to download and install IIS Manager for Remote Administration 1.2.  This will add the setting back in.  You'll also need to install it if your site is hosted on IIS 8 or higher.

Now from the IIS Manager File menu bar or globe icon, select Connect to a Site... to start the connection wizard.

On the first screen, enter the following information (your account information can be found in the Account Info/Edit section of Control Panel):

  • Server name: Your Alternative URL address (excluding the "http://" portion)
  • Site name: Your domain name


Once you have the information entered, click on the Next button to proceed to the credentials screen.  At the credentials screen, you'll want to use the following:

  • User name: Your FTP username (without customer ID prefix)
  • Password: Your FTP password


If you get this error:

"Could not connect to the specified computer.

Details: The remote server returned an error: (401) Unauthorized."


It can only mean 1 of 3 things.

  1. You are using the Connect to a Server... option instead of Connect to a Site...
  2. You have not granted permissions to the user to connect via IIS Manager.
  3. You entered an invalid username and/or password.

The last step is to create a connection name.  We recommend using your domain name to avoid any confusion should you create multiple connections.  Click the Finish button to complete the wizard.