'is not a valid virtual path' - host header help

[simon]

hello.
i'm trying to setup a website on my local server
when compiling it VS 2005 i get the error
"is not a valid virtual path"

from what i've read on the net, this is due to the fact that the site
is using IPort, which is no longer supported in VS 2005. I have to
use the IPort setup 192.168.2.102:8080 as my ISP blocks port 80

this is just a dev site, but i would like to access it externally,
hence the port 8080. I've read that a few people got around this
issue by using host headers. but i have yet to find an example of
how. anything listed out on the internet refer to only using port 80.
was hoping someone could help me with my setup of how to setup my site
to user IP:8080 and point to port 80 as well via host headers so that
the site can be built/compiled in VS 2005.
I assume i then have to make a DNS entry, host file entry or WINS
entry so that the site is accessible via the host header name. any
help with that would be appreciated greatly as well

my server is Win2003 w/ IIS6. and .net 2.0

thanks for any help

 

[Jon Skeet [C# MVP]]

hello.
i'm trying to setup a website on my local server
when compiling it VS 2005 i get the error
"is not a valid virtual path"

from what i've read on the net, this is due to the fact that the site
is using IPort, which is no longer supported in VS 2005. I have to
use the IPort setup 192.168.2.102:8080 as my ISP blocks port 80

this is just a dev site, but i would like to access it externally,
hence the port 8080. I've read that a few people got around this
issue by using host headers. but i have yet to find an example of
how. anything listed out on the internet refer to only using port 80.
was hoping someone could help me with my setup of how to setup my site
to user IP:8080 and point to port 80 as well via host headers so that
the site can be built/compiled in VS 2005.
I assume i then have to make a DNS entry, host file entry or WINS
entry so that the site is accessible via the host header name. any
help with that would be appreciated greatly as well

my server is Win2003 w/ IIS6. and .net 2.0

I don't really see what this has to do with VS2005 - surely it's just a
matter of telling IIS to run on port 8080 instead of port 80.

 

[simon]

I don't really see what this has to do with VS2005 - surely it's just a
matter of telling IIS to run on port 8080 instead of port 80.

apparently you could have a website in a project that used a specific
port number in VS 2003, but that capability was taken away (or it is
a bug) in VS 2005. if you try to build the site, you will get the
error "...is not a valid virtual path" - because the port number is
part of the path, as opposed to using the default port 80 where you
don't need to add the port.

so IIS is working fine for me running on port 8080, but VS can't do a
build of the site because of the port being part of the path.

any help would truly be appreciated!
thanks

 

[Jon Skeet [C# MVP]]

apparently you could have a website in a project that used a specific
port number in VS 2003, but that capability was taken away (or it is
a bug) in VS 2005. if you try to build the site, you will get the
error "...is not a valid virtual path" - because the port number is
part of the path, as opposed to using the default port 80 where you
don't need to add the port.

so IIS is working fine for me running on port 8080, but VS can't do a
build of the site because of the port being part of the path.

Perhaps you're using web projects in a different way to me. In VS2005,
I just build them "in place" and then point IIS at the directory as a
virtual directory. The port doesn't need to be in the path at all.

 

[simon]

if you have a solution opened to test with, right click the solution
and say "add external website". that website i have a port on (8080).
that is where i run into problems. adding the website to the
solution. even if i started a new solution and had the source on the
server, i'd still need to use the port to get to it and then when i
try to do a build, i get the error message.... not a valid path.

suggestions are appreciated as always. thanks!!

 

[Jon Skeet [C# MVP]]

if you have a solution opened to test with, right click the solution
and say "add external website". that website i have a port on (8080).
that is where i run into problems. adding the website to the
solution. even if i started a new solution and had the source on the
server, i'd still need to use the port to get to it and then when i
try to do a build, i get the error message.... not a valid path.

suggestions are appreciated as always. thanks!!

Ah, so you're not talking about an ASP.NET application? That's normally
what I've been editing in VS2005.

 

[simon]

right, it is an asp.net website, it is a known problem with VS2005
that didn't exist in 2003. and there is a "workaround" which is
configuring host headers and such, i just don't know what to set in
the host header section to do this. thanks again..

 

[Jon Skeet [C# MVP]]

right, it is an asp.net website, it is a known problem with VS2005
that didn't exist in 2003. and there is a "workaround" which is
configuring host headers and such, i just don't know what to set in
the host header section to do this. thanks again..

If it's an ASP.NET site, why do you need to add it as an "external
website"? Why can't you just add it as a normal project?

Ah, the penny's dropping - do you not have access to the site as a -
local file system? I've only ever developed on my local box, which
makes life rather simpler...

 

[simon]

exactly, the server is on my local network, but not a "mapped" drive,
so it is not a local resource, hence the external website.

 

[Jon Skeet [C# MVP]]

exactly, the server is on my local network, but not a "mapped" drive,
so it is not a local resource, hence the external website.

Any reason *not* to develop it on a local box (with source control, of
course)? Sounds like it would make your life a lot simpler.

 

[simon]

there are a few reasons i have to do it this way, to combersome to get
into all the details. trust me, if i didn't have to, i would be the
first to give up on this quest