Deploying ASP.NET Core to IIS on Windows Server

Introduction

Many Indian enterprises still host on Windows Server + IIS. ShopNest internal admin apps deploy behind IIS using the ASP.NET Core Module — not in-process IIS .NET Framework.

After this article you will

• Publish ShopNest from CLI and Visual Studio
• Configure IIS app pool and site
• Fix 500.30 and 502.5 startup errors
• Set environment variables in IIS
• Automate with Web Deploy

Prerequisites

• Article 58 — Test-Driven Development
• ShopNest solution builds and tests pass locally

Concept deep-dive

dotnet publish ShopNest.Web -c Release -o ./publish

# IIS prerequisites:
# - Hosting Bundle (ASP.NET Core Runtime + Module)
# - App Pool: No Managed Code, Integrated pipeline

<!-- web.config generated on publish -->
<aspNetCore processPath="dotnet" arguments=".ShopNest.Web.dll"
  stdoutLogEnabled="true" stdoutLogFile=".logsstdout"
  hostingModel="inprocess">
  <environmentVariables>
    <environmentVariable name="ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT" value="Production" />
  </environmentVariables>
</aspNetCore>

502.5: app failed to start — check Event Viewer, enable stdout logs, verify Hosting Bundle installed. 500.30: startup exception — wrong connection string or missing DLL.

Hands-on — ShopNest Corporate Internal Application

1. Publish Release folder to server path.
2. Create IIS site pointing to publish folder.
3. Install Hosting Bundle; restart IIS.
4. URL Rewrite for HTTP→HTTPS.
5. Web Deploy profile from Visual Studio for updates.

Common errors & best practices

• App pool .NET CLR v4 — must be No Managed Code.
• 32-bit app pool on 64-bit publish — mismatch.
• Permissions on logs folder for stdout.

Interview questions

Q: Why No Managed Code?
A: ASP.NET Core runs out-of-process/in-process via Kestrel + Module, not IIS CLR.

Q: web.config role?
A: Tells IIS how to launch dotnet and set env vars.

Summary

• Install Hosting Bundle before deploy
• App pool No Managed Code + Integrated
• stdout logs diagnose startup failures
• Web Deploy automates corporate updates

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