What is a Web site?

A Web site can be thought of as the group of settings that that are applied to an incoming Web request based on the network interface the client is connecting on or the host name the client is connecting to.

Note: The following topics are for advanced users only. Great care must be taken when configuring multiple Web sites. It is possible to misconfigure the Web server such that it would reject all Web requests. This would require you to reset your device to its factory settings. A misconfigured Web site could potentially create a breach of privacy and allow a hacker to take control of your device. Before you create a new Web site or modify an existing Web site, be sure to consider the policy and security implications contained in these help topics.

Mapping a Network Interface Card to a Web site

Some devices utilize more than one network interface card (NIC). For example, a home gateway may use one NIC to connect to the Internet (which will be referred to as "PublicNIC") and another NIC to connect to the internal network ("PrivateNIC").

We trust the people in our home network more than we trust unknown Internet users, so we give people connecting to the Windows Embedded Compact Web server via PrivateNIC greater access than those connecting on PublicNIC. We create one Web site that processes all requests that arrive on the PrivateNIC and another that handles all requests on PublicNIC. Since hackers anywhere in the world can access your device on the Internet, it is a bad idea to have the WebAdmin virtual directory available on the PublicNIC Web site, so it should only be on the PrivateNIC Web site. However, we could set up a virtual directory named /Pictures that could be accessed from either Web site.

Select the network interfaces link on the page of a given Web site to configure which network interfaces it receives requests on.

Mapping a hostname to a Web site

Web requests can be mapped to Web sites based on the host name that is specified in the request. For example, suppose MSN's music department purchased a company named http://www.worldwideimporters.com/ and that this company sells music CDs. MSN configures all requests to the IP address of www.worldwideimporters.com to be redirected to the www.msn.com.

The main reason MSN made this acquisition was because it wanted worldwideimporters.com's existing customers. To keep the customers happy, MSN wants them to continue to have the same experience they had when they used to visit worldwideimporters.com, even though the server msn.com is hosting the site now. MSN's administrators do this by creating a Web site 'WorldWideImporters' that processes all requests made to the hostname worldwideimporters.com (even though it has the same IP as msn.com). This site is configured so it feels to the customer like the original site, with the same pages, ordering scripts, and back- end databases. All other requests to msn.com continue to go to the default Web site, which contains the settings for the original MSN.

Note: Mapping a request based on the host name to a Web site is for advanced user only. Unlike restricting access to certain pages based on what NIC the request arrives on, mapping based on hostname offers no security advantages. Do not create a Web site that contains sensitive information and protect it only by choosing an obscure hostname, as hackers could easily circumvent this protection.

Select the host names link on the page of a given Web site to configure which host names it receives requests on. $$if (IsWebsiteConfigAllowed=="True")$$

Creating a new Web site

To create a new Web site, navigate to the WebAdmin homepage, select Create a new Web site, and follow the instructions. $$endif$$

The Default Web Site

The Windows Embedded Compact Web Server always has a Web site named "default" that cannot be deleted. The default Web site can be configured to accept Web requests that do not map to any other Web site by checking Allow default site on the network adapter configuration page for the default site.