Server file system requirements
Before you install Sitecore Experience Platform, you must fulfill all the requirements.
File system permissions for ASP.NET requests
Sitecore Experience Platform executes requests for ASP.NET resources and all the .NET code running within the application with the permissions of the account configured as an identity for the website’s application pool. This account requires Modify permissions for all the files, folders, and subfolders under the \wwwroot\<YourWebsiteFolder> folder.
The Sitecore Installation Framework automatically sets all the required permissions to your website folder. If you deploy Sitecore through a manual configuration, such as a PowerShell script or similar, you must set the correct file system permissions.
The default account that is used to process ASP.NET requests in the different versions of IIS:
| IIS version | Default ASP.NET account name |
|---|---|
| 10 | ApplicationPoolIdentity |
If you select a different user account to process the ASP.NET requests, you must also grant this account the Modify permissions.
For more information about application pool identities and specifically about assigning rights to the AppPoolIdentity account, see Microsoft’s documentation.
File system permissions for system folders
To load the .NET runtime and ASP.NET resources that are used to process the ASP.NET requests, the worker process that hosts the Sitecore Experience Platform application requires access to multiple system files and folders that are not distributed as a part of Sitecore Experience Platform, but are installed as a part of the Windows Operating System and the .NET framework. For more information about built-in groups and accounts in IIS, see Microsoft's documentation.
Most of these permissions are granted by IIS to all ASP.NET applications, automatically making the application pool identity account a member of the IIS_IUSRS security group.
However, in certain environments, you must manually grant permissions for the Application Pool Identity to the following system locations:
| Default location | Required permissions | Comments |
|---|---|---|
%WINDIR%\temp\ | Modify | To install Sitecore Experience Platform, you must assign the Modify access rights to the \temp folder for the ASP.NET and/or IUSR accounts. |
%WINDIR%\Globalization\ | Modify | Required for registering custom languages by the .NET Framework correctly. |
%PROGRAMDATA%\Microsoft\Crypto | Modify | Required for storing cryptographic keys used for encrypting/decrypting data. |
These variables have the following default values:
| Variable | Default value |
|---|---|
%WINDIR% | C:\Windows |
%PROGRAMDATA% | C:\ProgramData for IIS 10 and later |
The Sitecore Installation Framework specifies the required permissions for certificates under the \Crypto folder.
UNC share is not supported
You must install Sitecore Experience Platform on a local drive, not a Universal Naming Convention share.
Sitecore cannot operate from a virtual directory
Sitecore Experience Platform does not support operating from a virtual directory.