Microsoft Personal Web Server

Microsoft Personal Web Server (PWS) is a useful tool to testing web pages locally, that is on the same computer as they are developed.  This of course can be done in a browser by doing File, Open for simple html pages.  However, for pages which run on a server, such as Active Server Pages, this technique does not work, but PWS permits one to test these pages locally, thereby eliminating the need to FTP the web pages to a remote server to test them.  PWS is also useful as a tool in learning how to administer a server.

PWS is primarily a Windows 95 and Windows 98 tool, although I have been able to successfully install it and use it in Windows ME, although that use is not supported by Microsoft (see below).  During installation, ignore errors relating to Microsoft Transaction Server.  On Windows 2000 and XP Professional machines, IIS is running, and the Personal Web Manager tool in IIS is to be used instead of PWS.  According to Microsoft (see below), PWS can't be used on Windows XP Home although I have not tried to do this.

Personal Web Server is available as part of the Windows NT Option pack

Windows 98 - Instructions are from Microsoft Knowledge Base Article Q306898:

To install Microsoft Personal Web Server:
  1. Insert your Windows 98 CD-ROM in your CD-ROM drive.
  2. Click Start, and then click Run.
  3. In the Open box, type the following path to the Setup.exe file, where x is the letter of your CD-ROM drive:
      x:\add-ons\pws\setup.exe
  4. Click OK.
  5. Follow the instructions in Personal Web Server Setup.

Windows ME - Instructions are from Microsoft Knowledge Base Article Q266456 and Q300068

Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me) does not include or support any versions (1.0, 2.0, 4.0) of Microsoft Personal Web Server (PWS). More Information, nor is PWS included on the Windows ME CD.

Windows 2000 Professional is designed for business users and contains Internet Information Services (IIS) 5.0. IIS 5.0 includes Web and FTP server support, as well as support for Microsoft FrontPage transactions, Active Server Pages, and database connections. Available as an optional component, IIS 5.0 is installed automatically if you upgrade from versions of Windows with PWS installed.

PWS 4.0 is included with the Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack and was designed for Microsoft Windows 95 and Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 with Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 or later. Although PWS 4.0 is not supported in Windows Me, you may be able to install it in Windows Me for testing purposes.

This workaround is provided for advanced users who regularly test unsupported software configurations. If you are unsure of whether this accurately describes you, it is recommended that you do not download or install PWS on Windows Me. If you want to install PWS on Windows Me, Microsoft recommends that you install it in a test environment, not on a primary computer or operating system.

NOTE: Microsoft FrontPage 2000 can use disked-based Webs in Window Me as an alternative.

To download a copy of Personal Web Server (as part of Windows NT), you can go to  www.microsoft.com/ntserver/nts/downloads/recommended/nt4optpk/default.asp

Windows XP Home - Instructions are from Microsoft Knowledge Base Article Q304197

Windows XP Home Edition does not include or support any versions (1.0, 2.0, 4.0) of Microsoft Personal Web Server (PWS). Users that need Web server functionality in a desktop operating system should use Windows XP Professional. More Information

Windows XP Professional is designed for business users and contains Internet Information Services (IIS) version 5.1. IIS 5.1 includes Web and FTP server support, as well as support for Microsoft FrontPage transactions, Active Server Pages, and database connections. Available as an optional component, IIS 5.1 is installed automatically if you upgrade from versions of Windows with PWS installed.

PWS 4.0 is included with the Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack and was designed for Microsoft Windows 95 and Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 with Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 or later. PWS is not supported and cannot be installed on any version of Windows XP.

NOTE: Microsoft FrontPage 2002 can use disk-based Web pages in Windows XP Home Edition as an alternative.

Revised: September 17, 2002. Comments to William Pegram, wpegram@nvcc.edu