IIS7 urlrewrite module - Rules in external xml file

I'm using IIS7 UrlRewrite module. I set up my rules in the web.config <system.webServer><rewrite> section. I want to know if there's a way to defin开发者_运维问答e the rules in one external xml file instead of in web.config file. Thanks.

Yes, you can use the configSource attribute to point to an external file like you can with other web.config sections. In the web.config:

<rewrite>
    <rules configSource="Rewrite.config" />
</rewrite>

And in the rules config file:

<rules>
    <rule name="some rule">
        <!-- rule details here --->
    </rule>
</rules>

You can still even use the IIS manager to edit rules and it'll just work. One minor caveat with this approach: when you make a change and save an external file like this, it will not recycle the application like making a change to the web.config will. So if you're editing a rule and want to see it take effect, you need to manually poke the web.config by making an edit and saving it.

Another reference: Moving IIS7 url rewrite section out of the web.config file

You can use the sample URL Rewrite providers that include one for storing those in a separate file, see: http://www.iis.net/learn/extensions/url-rewrite-module/using-custom-rewrite-providers-with-url-rewrite-module