Windows 10 and Windows 11 users who recently installed the April Patch Tuesday updates may have encountered an unexpected addition to their system drive: a folder named inetpub. This folder, linked to Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS), is designed for hosting websites on personal computers. For those who do not utilize IIS, the appearance of this folder might seem unnecessary, prompting some to consider its deletion. However, that would be a misstep.
Leave it alone
The inetpub folder is not merely a remnant of IIS; it plays a crucial role in a recent security fix. Specifically, it addresses the CVE-2025-21204 vulnerability, which involves improper handling of symbolic links that could potentially be exploited by malicious actors to access or modify sensitive files and folders. This patch is essential for maintaining the integrity of your system.
Unfortunately, Microsoft did not adequately communicate the purpose of the inetpub folder, leading to confusion among users who might have mistakenly believed it was an error. To clarify, Microsoft has advised against removing the folder, emphasizing its importance in enhancing security. The company updated its advisory to inform users that the folder should remain intact, regardless of whether IIS is active on the device.
In Microsoft’s own words, “After installing the updates listed in the Security Updates table for your operating system, a new %systemdrive%inetpub folder will be created on your device. This folder should not be deleted regardless of whether Internet Information Services (IIS) is active on the target device. This behavior is part of changes that increase protection and does not require any action from IT admins and end users.”
What if you already removed it?
If you have already deleted the inetpub folder, there is no cause for alarm. You can easily restore it by enabling IIS through the following steps:
- Open the Control Panel in icon view and select the applet for Programs and Features.
- On the left side of the window, click the option for “Turn Windows features on or off.”
- In the Windows Features box, check the option for “Internet Information Services.”
- Click OK and allow Windows to apply the changes.
- After the process is complete, check your system drive, and the inetpub folder should reappear.
Enabling IIS will not only recreate the folder but also generate some files and subfolders, which occupy minimal disk space. More importantly, this action ensures that the folder retains the same protective measures as intended by Microsoft.
While the company has yet to clarify the rationale behind naming the folder inetpub, it is evident that this choice has led to unnecessary confusion among users. Moving forward, one hopes that Microsoft will adopt a more transparent approach when introducing new elements to the Windows environment.
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