Using IIS7 to debug instead of Development Server

Question

Can someone please tell me what needs to be done to debug a asp.net app using IIS7 instead of the Development server with VS2010. I have found multiple resources online that says how to do it and they all have different steps. I cannot seem to get it to work.

Thanks, Blake

Answer 1

1. Install IIS 7
2. Register ASP.NET with IIS (aspnet_regiis.exe -i)
3. Configure the web project to use IIS instead of the built-in server:

Remark: You could also checkout IIS Express.

Answer 2

If you mean debug a web application that is running in IIS instead of the development server, then "Attach to process" is the way to go. This means selecting in the debug menu "Attach to process" instead of "Start Debugging". You will see a dialog a bit like the task manager and will need to select the process to attach to. For IIS this will be w3wp.exe. There will most likely be more than one instance of w3wp.exe running - so selecting the right one will be the real trick. Set a debug point in the source - if you're connected to the right w3wp instance the debug point will look as normal rather than having the warning sign (and looking flat and white). I was doing this today and used this as a reference.