Why SharePoint 2010 is automatically creating website on each server in the farm

 

Every time when creating a web application, the SharePoint will automatically create a virtual website on each server in the farm

Any web application created will be created on all the server in the SharePoint farm running the "Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Web Application" service. This service defines the server as a WFE. It creates all IIS sites & application pools and along-with inetpub folders on the server.

This task is achieved via the SharePoint Timer service jobs. When a new web app is created, first it gets created on the server hosting the Central Admin. Then this process is replicated across all web servers running the above-mentioned service. Thus you will find virtual websites on all those web servers. Even if you use a wizard, the same thing will happen.

When a server is disconnected and then reconnected to a farm, the timer service will check the services running on that server and if "Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Web Application" is in started state, all web apps present on the WFE servers will be created on the newly joined server.

If you do not want sites to be created on a server, stop the "Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Web Application" service on that server.

The web server role is usually enabled in the Application server. That is because in most farms, App server also hosts the Central Administration site.

 

The web front end should have these services:

1.       Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Web Application (this is what turns IIS into a SharePoint “page-serving” machine)

2.       Search Query and Site Settings Service (the process that takes the user’s query string and looks it up in the index)

3.       SharePoint Server Search Service (but just the functionality that is necessary for the query processor)

And the Application Server should have:

1.       Central Administration

2.       Access Database Service

3.       Application Registry Service

4.       Business Data Connectivity Service

5.       Excel Calculation Services

6.       Managed Metadata Web Service

7.       Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Incoming E-mail

8.       Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Workflow Timer Service

9.       Secure Store Service

10.   SharePoint Server Search (but just the scheduled content crawling and indexing building functionality)

11.   User Profile Service

12.   Visio Graphics Service

13.   Web Analytics Data Processing Service

14.   Web Analytics Web Service

15.   Word Automation Services

16.   Word Viewing Service

Thanks for reading. If you have some other explanation – please post a comment… I’ll be happy to hear.

...HaPpY CoDiNg

Partha (Aurum)