IIS Express lets you run an MDriven Turnkey application locally from MDriven Designer so you can test model and application changes without deploying to a server.
Use IIS Express for local Turnkey development
IIS Express is a lightweight Windows web server intended for development. MDriven Designer can use it to start MDriven Turnkey on your computer, which shortens the edit-and-test loop while you work on a model.
Use IIS Express for local development. For an IIS-hosted server environment, follow Documentation:Deploying MDriven Server & Turnkey Core on IIS instead.
Install IIS Express
If you selected the IIS Express check button in MDriven Designer and arrived at this page, MDriven Designer did not find IIS Express in its expected location.
- Download IIS Express from Microsoft's IIS Express download page.
- Run the Microsoft installer and complete the installation.
- Install IIS Express in the default location. MDriven Designer looks for it at
C:\Program Files\IIS Express. - Restart MDriven Designer if it was open while you installed IIS Express.
- Run the IIS Express check in MDriven Designer again. A successful check is shown as a green button.
If IIS Express is installed elsewhere, install it again in C:\Program Files\IIS Express. MDriven Designer checks this location.
Start Turnkey locally
After IIS Express is available, use the local Turnkey controls in MDriven Designer.
- In MDriven Designer, check IIS Express and confirm that the check succeeds.
- Use the MDriven Turnkey download control to download and unpack the Turnkey application locally.
- Select Start MDriven Turnkey on IIS Express.
- Keep the command window open while you use the local application. It shows the IIS Express process.
- Open the URL started by MDriven Designer in your browser. The recorded walkthrough uses port
8182for this local session.
The browser runs a functional local web application. You can make changes in MDriven Designer, save them, and continue testing in the browser without a server deployment.
Test in more than one browser
You can open the same local application in multiple browser windows or browsers. For example, open it in Edge and Chrome, change data in one window, then observe the change in the other. The walkthrough describes an expected propagation interval of about eight seconds; refresh the browser when you need to force a new display sooner.
Keep the local Turnkey application current
Use the MDriven Turnkey download control periodically to refresh the locally unpacked Turnkey application. The walkthrough recommends doing this about once per week rather than before every run.
IIS Express and IIS are different
| Topic | IIS Express | Full IIS |
|---|---|---|
| Intended use | Local development and prototyping from MDriven Designer. | Hosting MDriven Server and Turnkey on Windows Server or another IIS environment. |
| MDriven Designer check location | C:\Program Files\IIS Express
|
Not applicable. |
| Deployment configuration | Started locally by MDriven Designer. | Requires IIS sites, application pools, permissions, and deployment configuration. |
| Where to learn more | This page. | Documentation:Deploying MDriven Server & Turnkey Core on IIS |
Do not use the IIS Express steps on this page as a replacement for production IIS configuration. Full IIS setup, application-pool permissions, and startup troubleshooting belong to the IIS documentation.
Troubleshooting
The IIS Express check does not succeed
Confirm that IIS Express is installed at C:\Program Files\IIS Express, then restart MDriven Designer and run the check again. If the installer used another location, reinstall IIS Express at the expected default location.
You need to host MDriven Server locally on Windows 7 Enterprise
Use HowTos:Install MDriven Server on Windows 7 Enterprise. That guide describes the Windows 7 Enterprise-specific local setup, including IIS Express and WebMatrix.
You are troubleshooting a full IIS application
Use HowTos:Troubleshooting IIS application startup issues for startup problems. If an IIS-hosted MDriven application repeatedly restarts, see Documentation:IIS application restart problem. For the application-pool account and folder access, see Documentation:AppPool user.