WINDOWS 2000 SERVER

SET UP A NEWS SERVER WITH THE NNTP SERVICE

The Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) is the standard protocol used by news servers that host Usenet-style newsgroups. Windows 2000 Server includes the NNTP Service, which you can use to configure a server as a news server.

While you can't configure the NNTP Service to pull public news feeds, you can set up both moderated and unmoderated newsgroups in-house. For example, you could use the NNTP Service to host a customer support newsgroup.

To begin, check the IIS console for a Default NNTP Virtual Server branch. If none is present, you can add the NNTP Service from Control Panel. Open the Add/Remove Programs applet, click Add/Remove Windows Components, select Internet Information Services, and click Details. Select NNTP Service, click OK, click Next, and click Finish to complete the installation.

After installing the service, expand the Default NNTP Virtual Server branch in the IIS console. By default, the NNTP Service creates three control newsgroups that enable the addition and removal of newsgroups by news client applications and news servers. You can also add your own newsgroups.

By default, the NNTP Service allows anonymous access to the news service. If you want to use authentication to restrict access, right-click Default NNTP Virtual Server, and choose Properties. On the Access tab, click Authentication in the Access Control section, deselect the Allow Anonymous check box, and click OK.

To limit access by IP address or subnet, click Connection on the Access tab to open a dialog box you can use to specify individual addresses, subnets, and domains to which you want to allow access.