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Q230308: Contents of NNTP Service Release Notes

Article: Q230308
Product(s): Internet Information Server
Version(s): winnt:4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): 
Last Modified: 06-AUG-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Internet Information Server version 4.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

The More Information section of this article contains a copy of the NNTP Service
Release Notes included with the Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack.

The file containing these Release Notes is located at
<%SystemRoot%>\Help\iis\htm\core\newsrel.htm.

NOTE: The formatting and layout of the text below may vary slightly from the
original.

MORE INFORMATION
================

Microsoft NNTP Service Release Notes
------------------------------------

The following sections are included in this document:

  Welcome to Microsoft NNTP Service
  Using Microsoft NNTP Service Product Documentation
  Hardware and Software Requirements
  Installation
  Client Software
  Known Issues
  Copyright Information

Welcome to Microsoft NNTP Service
---------------------------------

Welcome to this Microsoft NNTP Service release. NNTP Service makes it easy for
users to engage in discussions about any given topic. They can read articles
from others who have similar interests, post articles, and join conversation
threads about particular topics. This release features:

- Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) support.

- Open, cross-platform, Internet-based NNTP client support.

- Secure authentication using NNTP security extensions that do not send user
  passwords in clear text over the network.

- Secure authentication that allows encrypted passwords to be transmitted over
  the Internet.

- Local, remote, and moderator-approved article posting.

- Built-in support for control messages that can automatically create or delete
  newsgroups as well as cancel postings.

- Support for both private and public newsgroups.

- Transaction logs for offline processing to collect usage statistics, track
  messages and transactions, and examine usage patterns.

- Newsgroup searching.

- Support for Microsoft Index Server. For more information about Microsoft
  Index Server see http://www.microsoft.com/ntserver/search/

Using Microsoft NNTP Service Product Documentation
--------------------------------------------------

Context-sensitive help is available by clicking the Help button in a property
sheet or in a dialog box. Additional documentation for Microsoft NNTP Service
can be reached by selecting Product Documentation in the Microsoft Internet
Information Server (IIS) program group.

Hardware and Software Requirements
----------------------------------

This version of Microsoft NNTP Service has the same minimum hardware requirements
as Windows NT Server version 4.0 and Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS)
version 4.0. It is important that you plan thoroughly before building your news
service. To install and run Microsoft NNTP Service, the following software must
be installed:

- Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0

- Microsoft Windows NT Service Pack 3 (or later), available in the \Support\qfe
  directory on the installation compact disc or from
  http://www.microsoft.com/ntserversupport/

Installation
------------

Microsoft NNTP Service is installed as part of Microsoft Internet Information
Server (IIS) 4.0. After Windows NT Service Pack 3 is set up, follow the
installation instructions included with IIS 4.0. As part of the installation,
select the "Microsoft NNTP Service" check box.

Client Software
---------------

You can use any NNTP-compatible client, such as the Microsoft Internet Mail and
News component of Microsoft Internet Explorer version 3.02 or 4.0. To enable
security, you must use a client that supports secure sockets layer (SSL) or
Windows NT Challenge/Response, such as Internet Mail and News.

You can download Microsoft Internet Explorer from http://www.microsoft.com/ie. Be
sure to download the Typical version of Internet Explorer, which includes
Internet Mail and News. If you already have Internet Explorer but you are
missing the Internet Mail and News reader, you can download it separately by
following the features and components link.

Known Issues
------------

RPC Locator Service Must be Started:

The Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator service must be started if you are using
the Internet Service Manager administration program.

To start the RPC Locator service:

1. From the Start menu, choose Settings and Control Panel.

2. Select the Services application.

3. In the Service box, select Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator, and then
  choose Start.

Unattended Option Pack Installation For Installing Microsoft NNTP Service:

If you are using Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) on an intranet, you
can copy the Unattend.txt file from the Windows NT Option Pack compact disc to a
folder on the local computer and perform unattended installations from that
folder. This is useful because Microsoft NNTP Service is not a default component
during Setup. The Unattend.txt file is located on the compact disc in the \CPU
type\inetsrv\directory, where CPU type is the processor on the computer where
IIS will be installed.

To start unattended setup:

1. Copy Unattend.txt to your local drive and make any necessary changes to
  install the appropriate components.

2. Edit the [Components] section to include "iis_nntp = on" and "iis_nntp_docs =
  on".

3. At a command prompt, change to the directory on the compact disc that
  contains Setup.exe and enter the following command:
  "setup/u:<drive>:<path>\Unattend.txt" where <drive> is the
  drive and <path> is the full path on the local computer where
  Unattend.txt is located. For example:

  setup/u:c:\temp\unattend.txt

Using Moderated Newsgroups and SMTP:

Postings to moderated newsgroups are sent to the moderator using SMTP with an
empty Mail From: envelope line. For these messages to be received, the SMTP
server must have an account set up to accommodate the requests.

NNTP Service Manager (HTML):

If NNTP Service Manager (HTML) does not start, type the following URL in your Web
browser:

  http://localhost/news/admin/default.htm

Virtual Directories Terminology:

Windows NT Server event logs use the term "virtual roots" to refer to virtual
directories.

Using WINS and Host Tables for Intranet Service:

Although Domain Name System (DNS) is required to deploy Microsoft NNTP Service on
the Internet, WINS or host tables can be substituted for DNS when using
Microsoft NNTP Service on an intranet.

Naming Newsgroups:

It is recommended that you use 7-bit (lower ASCII) characters for newsgroup
names.

Registry Keys:

The following preferences cannot be changed in the administration user interface.
They can, however, be modified through the Windows NT Server registry. The
Microsoft NNTP Service settings are located under the following registry key:

  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\NNTPSvc\Parameters

Settings that are not listed below should not be modified. The following is a
brief description of the settings.

+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Key                   | Description                                           | Type      | Default    | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| NewsCrawlerTime       | Frequency of expiration cycle                         | REG_DWORD | 30 minutes | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| RejectGenomeGroups    | If TRUE, reject groups with funny names               | REG_DWORD | FALSE      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HistoryExpiration     | Time limit on message IDs in the history table        | REG_DWORD | 3 weeks    | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HonorClientMessageIDs | If TRUE, honor client message IDs on POSTs            | REG_DWORD | TRUE       | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| GenerateErrFiles      | If TRUE, move bad articles received into .err files   | REG_DWORD | TRUE       | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HonorApprovedHeader   | If TRUE, validate approved header for moderated posts | REG_DWORD | TRUE       | 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Web Administration Authentication:

An authenticated connection is required to administer Microsoft NNTP Service
using a Web browser. The default authentication mechanism is Windows NT
Challenge/Response. If you use a browser that does not support Windows NT
Challenge/Response, IIS server settings for the Web administration directory
must be changed.
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Copyright Information
---------------------

(C) 1997 Microsoft Corporation

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Neither Microsoft nor its suppliers makes any warranty, express or implied with
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Neither Microsoft nor its suppliers shall have any liability for any damages
whatsoever including consequential, incidental, direct, indirect, special, and
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implied warranties, the above limitation may not apply to you. In any event,
Microsoft's and its suppliers' entire liability in any manner arising out of
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suggested retail price of these materials.

Additional query words: iis kbreadme readme newsrel.htm newsrel network news transport protocol akz

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Keywords          :  
Technology        : kbiisSearch kbiis400
Version           : winnt:4.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

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