Chapter 7:  Running SmarterStats on IIS

SmarterStats includes a simple, built-in web server.  However, with IIS7, SmarterTools recommends (for improved performance) that you turn off the built-in web server and run SmarterStats off IIS instead.  In this chapter, we'll show you how to do this in a few steps and also show you how to log into stats for the first time so you can register your license.

1.  First, we'll need to turn off SmarterStats' built-in web server.  Click the Windows Start button, then click on Computer.




2. Double-click on SYSTEM (C:).




3.  Double-click Program Files (x86).




4.  Double-click SmarterTools.




5.  Double-click SmarterStats.




6.  Double-click Web Server.




7.  Double-click STWebConfig.




8.  On the "Web Server Config" dialog box, click Stop.  This will stop the SmarterStats web server.




9.  On the "Startup Mode" drop down, select Disabled.




10.  Click Apply for the new Startup Mode.




11.  Click Close.




12.  Open up (or go to) IIS Manager, then click on the Sites folder on the Connections pane.




13.  Click Add Web Site... on the Actions pane.




14.  On the "Add Web Site" dialog box, enter in SmarterStats for Site name.  You'll see that an application pool is also created with the same name.




15.  For "Physical path", click the browse button.




16.  Browse to C: > Program Files (x86) > SmarterTools > SmarterStats > MRS.  Then click OK.




17.  Under the "Binding" section, select your Primary IP address (the same IP address you set up your website with) from the drop down.




18.  For "Host name," enter stats.developernirvana.com (use your domain instead of developernirvana.com).




19. Be sure the box for "Start Web site immediately" is checked.  Click OK. 




20.  On your sites list, if SmarterStats shows a red "x" next to it, click the refresh button to be sure the "x" disappears.




21.  On the Connections pane, click Application Pools.




22.  Click on the SmarterStats application pool.




23.  On the Actions pane, under "Edit Application Pool," click Basic Settings.




24.  For the "Managed pipeline mode" drop down, choose Classic.




25.  Click OK.




26.  Using a web browser not located on your server, visit http://stats.yourdomain.com.  Note that if you have not yet delegated your domain to point to the nameservers you set up in Chapter 2, or have not allowed 24-72 hours for the DNS to fully propagate, your domain may not work yet from an outside location.  If this is the case, visit http://stats.yourdomain.com on a web browser on your server.

On the login page, enter in admin for the Site ID, the username you set up for the System Administrator, and the password.  Then click Login.




27.  You're now logged in as a System admin for your SmarterStats installation.  Now lets register your license key.  Click Settings.




28.  Expand the Defaults node, then select Product Activation.




29.  Then select Activate a License Key.




30.  Enter the License Key provided to you in your SmarterBundle email from SmarterTools, then click Next.




31.  Enter the email address and password provided to you in the SmarterBundle email, then click Activate Now.




32.  Click OK.




33.  Log out of SmarterStats, then revist the login page.  This time we will log in with the user information (the second username you set up during the set up process).  This time you will enter in "1" for Site ID (unless you chose to use a different Site ID at setup), then enter your username, password, then click Login.




34.  You are now logged in as a stats user and will be able to view all of your site stats from this location.