Windows Server 2008 : Configuring Windows Media Services (part 3) - Using Windows Media Services Management Tools

Using Windows Media Services Management Tools

Windows Media Services has two main administrative tools. You can launch the Windows Media Services console by selecting Windows Media Services from the Administrative Tools program group. (See Figure 4.)

Figure 4. Using the Windows Media Services console

If you have chosen to install the Web-Based Administration option, you can also configure Windows Media Services by using a Web browser. The default port for the Windows Media Administration Web site is HTTP port 8080. You can start, stop, and reconfigure the Web site, using IIS Manager. (See Figure 5.)

Figure 5. Viewing the Windows Media Administration Site by using IIS Manager

Once you have started the site, you can access it by launching Windows Media Services (Web) from the Administrative Tools program group or by navigating to its URL directly. The default site bindings do not include an SSL-enabled site binding, so you will receive the warning shown in Figure 6. For more information about configuring and enabling Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) for a Web site. You can also continue to the Windows Media Services administration Web site without using an SSL connection.

Figure 6. Viewing a Windows Media Services Security Settings warning

The Windows Media Services Administration Web site, as shown in Figure 7, has been designed to resemble the Windows Media Services console. All the same features and functions are available using this site. The Web pages are configured to refresh automatically at regular intervals to ensure that current information is displayed. In general, the administration Web site is more convenient for performing remote management features.

Figure 7. Viewing the Windows Media Services Administration Web site

The remainder of the screens and instructions in this lesson will focus on using the Windows Media Services console. However, most of the same steps can be completed using the Windows Media Services Administration Web site.