HTTP Error 403.14 - Forbidden when you open an IIS webpage

  • Article

This article helps you resolve the "HTTP Error 403.14 - Forbidden - The web server is configured to not list the contents of this directory" error that occurs when you open an Internet Information Services (IIS) webpage.

Original product version:   Internet Information Services
Original KB number:   942062

Note

The target audience for this article is website administrators and web developers.

Symptoms

When you visit a website hosted on IIS, you receive an error message that resembles the following one:

Server Error in Application "<application name>"
HTTP Error 403.14 - Forbidden
HRESULT: 0x00000000
Description of HRESULT : The Web server is configured to not list the contents of this directory.

Resolution for users

If you're a user, you should contact the website administrators to notify them that this error has occurred for this web address.

Resolution for site administrators

This problem occurs because the website doesn't have the Directory Browsing feature enabled or the default document isn't enabled or configured properly. To resolve this problem, use one of the following methods:

Method 1: Enable the Directory Browsing feature in IIS

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

  1. Select Start > Run, type inetmgr.exe, and then select OK to start IIS Manager.
  2. In IIS Manager, expand <server name> > Web sites, and select the website that you want to change.
  3. In the Features view, double-click Directory Browsing.
  4. In the Actions pane, select Enable.

Method 2: Add a default document

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

  1. Select Start > Run, type inetmgr.exe, and then select OK to start IIS Manager.
  2. In IIS Manager, expand <server name> > Web sites, and then select the website that you want to change.
  3. In the Features view, double-click Default Document.
  4. In the Actions pane, select Enable.
  5. In the Features view, the Default Document must be listed (preferably first). If not, in the Actions pane, select Add, type the name of the default document in the Add Default Document box, and then select OK. The file must exist in the site's root folder.

Method 3: Enable the Directory Browsing feature in IIS Express

Note

This method is for the web developers who experience this issue when they use IIS Express.

  1. Open a Command Prompt window, and navigate to the IIS Express folder on your computer. For example, type the following command at the command prompt, and then select Enter:

    cd C:\Program Files\IIS Express

  2. Type the following command, and then select Enter:

    appcmd set config /section:directoryBrowse /enabled:true

    For more information about Appcmd.exe command lines, see Getting Started with AppCmd.exe.