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IIS vs Windows Process Activation Services comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IIS
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (4th)
Windows Process Activation ...
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
26th
Average Rating
4.0
Reviews Sentiment
2.8
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of IIS is 7.1%, down from 11.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows Process Activation Services is 1.2%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IIS7.1%
Windows Process Activation Services1.2%
Other91.7%
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

Krishnakumar Natarajan - PeerSpot reviewer
Systems Engineer at Atos
Designs and manages multiple websites while ensuring data backup and disaster recovery
I have experience with AWS, and I am most familiar with the server environment, as we just use the server environment and then use Microsoft products on an AWS environment. I have experience with Windows Server IIS, which I ran on my own on-premise data center. The website was developed and then hosted, and through IIS, we managed the servers. The manageability within the IIS environment is not very difficult. For server management, you need to ensure data backup, data restore, and you have a DR configured to keep the database intact. It was done on-premises, so I had no problem doing that. If you have to go to the cloud, then you should have the storage connected to the IIS server and also have a DR set up for that. I didn't use Microsoft Azure tools, but since it is a Microsoft product, Azure has all the portability, so you don't have to worry about compatibility on the cloud. On a scale of 1-10, I would rate this solution a 10.
it_user1226547 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior IT Systems Administrator at a energy/utilities company with 501-1,000 employees
Central console enables us to see all of the activated and deactivated computers but it has poor alerts and frustrating technical support
The solution needs to allow for other company product licenses to be included if possible. The solution needs to include other Microsoft products, like Exchange, SharePoint, etc. Right now, it's only for Windows and Office. The solution needs to be made web-based. Right now, we have to install some tools and to use these tools we have to log into a specific server. If that server has an issue we cannot manage it. The solution needs to be able to be managed from any machine. Alerting capabilities should be improved. If a license expires or there is a breach, or something is non-compliant, the solution should send out alerts.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution is the easiest way to publish applications which have been designed by older development tools."
"The most valuable feature of IIS is that it's free, and it works."
"Authentication for network appliances, load balancing products and wireless devices became easy to do."
"The tool is very easy to use and efficient."
"I have tried other tools (such as Apache), and found that IIS is more stable and easier on the memory for low resource systems."
"My advice to others is this is a simple-to-use solution and you can find items with ease."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten...Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten."
"It's good and offers good usability."
"The most valuable aspect of the solution is the central console, that allows you to see all of the activated and deactivated computers."
 

Cons

"It would be beneficial if you could automate security certificate monitoring with IIS."
"Compared to Linux, the solution’s Windows patching is slower. I would like to improve it."
"The product could be more compatible with Linux and macOS, particularly when applying user configuration policies."
"Presently, some developers do not have technical knowledge of managing IIS, so that needs to be improved in the next release."
"The solution must improve the integration between its databases."
"Sometimes, we encounter difficult issues, and getting support from Microsoft to resolve those issues is not easy."
"The documentation is not very detailed. They need to improve it and add to it. They should ensure there are lots of visuals to help users better understand the solution."
"This solution needs to be easier for cases where you want to have an IIS cluster."
"The solution is kind of a necessary evil for us."
"The stability of the solution needs improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I think it's part of the Windows Server, so you won't have any other costs to add in order to use the IIS service."
"I was using the trial version of IIS inside my virtual machines."
"There is no license needed to use the solution."
"Users can get a subscription-based license or a perpetual license for IIS."
"There is a license needed for the solution."
"The yearly licensing cost is very high. The solution is very expensive."
"IIS's pricing is reasonable."
"IIS's pricing is not expensive."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business29
Midsize Enterprise11
Large Enterprise22
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - IIS or NGINX Plus?
IIS is a flexible, secure, and manageable web server to host anything on the web. IIS’s scalable and open architecture can handle the most demanding tasks. From media streaming to web applications,...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IIS?
For the pricing, setup cost, and licensing for IIS, as a Microsoft product, I didn't think much about separately purchasing an IIS product as it is part of Microsoft Windows. We bought a developmen...
What needs improvement with IIS?
I see that IIS has maintained the same interface for a long time, so they could potentially use more automation or integrate Copilot into it to make it easier to use. I have not accessed or checked...
Ask a question
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Also Known As

Windows Server IIS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Erste Bank Group, NJVC, Samsung Electronics, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Tata Steel Europe, Urban Software Institute
Bank Alfalah Ltd., Harris Farm Markets, The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, John Keells Holdings, Green Prefab, 343 Industries, SM Prime, Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System Ltd.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, F5, IBM and others in Application Infrastructure. Updated: May 2026.
900,644 professionals have used our research since 2012.