Managing "web sites", especially through IIS, can be an interesting trip down through the ranks of computers and politics.
As a developer, the typical lifecycle for a new website goes something like this.
- Create Virtual Directory in IIS with proper settings
- Copy files up to virtual directory.
- Run Site.
- Make changes to files locally.
- Push changes up to site.
- Make changes to virtual directory settings as needed.
- Repeat 4-6 as needed.
This all seems pretty straightforward, except for the fact that in most circumstances, the site configuration and file uploads are handled by a server administrator. They are responsible for what files stay on their server and what interacts with it. Some server admins don't mind developers tossing files around and doing a few minor configuration changes. Others mind a LOT, and require a ticket or an e-mail in order to push things up.
The problem arises when changes need to be done rapidly, and the server admin is swamped. Generally speaking file migrations become a low priority, so you can be stuck waiting for a while, for a pretty simply process. At other times it's due to some of the expertise needed to run IIS. I've had a few configuration changes I've needed (such as application pools or .Net versions within the application), and when e-mailing the admin about it, the response has been that they don't know what I was talking about, and I walked them through the process.
What to do?! I asked this question a while back in ServerFault, and I think the response is still in the middle. How do you handle it?