Enabling Dynamic HTTP Compression in IIS7 on Windows Server 2008

I’m not very familiar with the newer configuration screens in Windows Server 2008 so I pulled my hair out trying to update some settings. Apparently it’s just too obvious for Google to have been any help so I’m documenting it here for the next shmuck.

I wanted to enable dynamic http compression. I found the page to enable it but it wasn’t installed:

“The dynamic content compression module is not installed.” (but we won’t tell you how to install it)

It turns out that installing it is very easy and didn’t require a reboot (for me, at least):

Text only

Install it:

1. Open server manager
2. Roles > Web Server (IIS)
3. Role Services (scroll down) > Add Role Services
4. Add desired role (Web Server > Performance > Dynamic Content Compression)
5. Next, Install, Wait…Done!

Enable it:

1. Open server manager
2. Roles > Web Server (IIS) > Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager
3. Next pane: Sites > Default Web Site > Your Web Site
4. Main pane: IIS > Compression

With perdy pictures

Install it:

1. Open server manager
   
   
2. Roles > Web Server (IIS)
3. Role Services (scroll down) > Add Role Services
   
   
4. Add desired role (Web Server > Performance > Dynamic Content Compression)
   
   
5. Next, Install, Wait…Done!
   

Enable it:

1. Open server manager
2. Roles > Web Server (IIS) > Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager
   
   
3. Next pane: Sites > Default Web Site > Your Web Site
4. Main pane: IIS > Compression
   
   
   

You might be wondering why you’d want to compress content in the first place. This site has a nice analysis of the practice as well as detailed information regarding what compression level you should use (and how to set it).