downloading files from another server through aspx

  • Thread starter Thread starter Wardeaux
  • Start date Start date
W

Wardeaux

Hey all,
I'm hitting a wall... We have many daily reports generated on another
server, need to present list of available files and allow user to download
desired files from aspx page... any suggestions on how to do this? The
other server is running Win2K3 with SQL but no IIS... tried mapping drives
and setting up shortcuts, nothing allows permissions from IIS_Guest
account...
even a "Can't Get there from here..." would be appreciated at this point!

many thanks in advance....
wardeaux
 
Its a permissions problem. Your asp page would have to impersonate a user
who could connect to that remote server to allow it to run as that user.
Then your anonymous guests could access the remote server via the page that
is impersonating the privelaged user.

Always a really tricky problem.

Stating the obvious - why dont you just install IIS to the SQL box, or
install something like tiny web server. Save yourself a lot of headaches.

--
Regards

John Timney
Microsoft Regional Director
Microsoft MVP
 
John,
thanks for the reply. Any suggestions on good articles on setting up
"impersonation"... Installing IIS on the SQL box is a good suggestion, but
because of security requirements, we're not allowed to have both IIS and SQL
on the same box, (strange but true...)... anyways looks like impersonation
is a viable(?) option... any suggestions on articles and reading is most
appreciated! :)
many thanks!
wardeaux
 
Maybe another option would be for the SQL server to push the files to the
webserver?
I think impersonation is the way to go though. I've used impersonation in
the past to solve this sort of problem.

Michael
 
how about a simple <identity impersonate="true"
userName="domain_user_withFolderRightsOnly" password="user_password" /> in
your web.config ... then the magic happens ...
 
Thats where I would start ......simple impersonation with a named account.

Micheal suggests something interesting though - could you put a directory
watcher in place that pushed the reports to the IIS server when the
directory gets updated? The win2k resource kit even has a replication tool
in it that already does this you wouldn't even need to write anything.

Regards

John Timney
Microsoft Regional Director
Microsoft MVP
 
John,
My news reader didn't get all the other comments, only yours... so:
malek: thanks for the suggestion.
Michael/John: thanks for the suggestion... unfortunately the folder contains
a couple Gb of reports, and we really don't want those duplicated on our IIS
server if we don't have to... however, we'll keep that as a "last resort"
option.

Thanks again, all!
wardeaux
 
If you cant get the permission sorted for your aspx page to access the
remote server - given what you have said, I would look at putting a small
free standing web server on the server and using that instead. Simple read
only access to a file list, or you could easily present that using the net
webclasses through aspx and have access directly to the remote server that
way.

Regards

John Timney
Microsoft Regional Director
Microsoft MVP
 
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