When IIS Manager appears blank or empty, it typically indicates permission or configuration issues. The problem often occurs when:

• User lacks proper permissions
• Management Service isn't properly configured
• Features are missing from IIS installation

Based on the screenshots provided, here are the critical permissions needed:

1. Local Administrator rights on the IIS server
2. Membership in IIS_IUSRS group
3. Read/Write permissions to applicationHost.config
4. Management Service delegation rights

First, verify your installation:

# PowerShell command to check installed IIS features
Get-WindowsFeature -Name Web-* | Where-Object Installed

Then configure management service delegation:

# Add user to IIS Manager Users
Add-IISManagerUser -Name "domain\username" -Password "password"

# Grant permissions to specific site
Set-WebConfigurationProperty 
    -pspath 'MACHINE/WEBROOT/APPHOST' 
    -filter "system.webServer/management/authorization" 
    -name "enabled" 
    -value "True"

If basic permissions don't resolve the issue, check these advanced settings:

# Verify applicationHost.config permissions
icacls %windir%\system32\inetsrv\config\applicationHost.config

# Reset IIS configuration
%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe unlock config -section:system.webServer/management

Watch out for these frequent mistakes:

• Incorrect delegation settings in Management Service
• Missing Web-Mgmt-Service feature
• Firewall blocking WMSVC port (8172)

For complete resolution, ensure all these components are properly configured and test connectivity to the management service.

When IIS Manager appears blank, you're typically missing these critical permissions:

1. Local Server Administration:
   - Local Administrators group membership
   - IIS_IUSRS group membership

2. Windows Features:
   - Management Service (WMSVC) enabled
   - IIS Management Console feature installed

3. Delegation Permissions:
   - Site-level "IIS Manager Permissions" configured
   - Feature Delegation settings

First, verify your installation status:

# PowerShell command to check IIS management components
Get-WindowsFeature -Name Web-Mgmt-* | Select Name,InstallState

# Expected output:
# Name               InstallState  
# ----               -----------  
# Web-Mgmt-Console     Installed
# Web-Mgmt-Service     Installed

If components are missing, install them via PowerShell:

Install-WindowsFeature -Name Web-Mgmt-Console, Web-Mgmt-Service -IncludeManagementTools

For domain accounts, you need explicit configuration:

# Grant IIS Manager access via appcmd
%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set config /section:system.webServer/management /access.readOnly:false

# Add specific user via GUI or command:
%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set config /section:system.webServer/management /+"[userName='DOMAIN\username']"

When permissions appear correct but UI remains blank:

1. Check WMSVC service status:

   Get-Service -Name WMSVC | Select Status,StartType

2. Verify feature delegation:

   %windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe list config -section:system.webServer/management /text:*

3. Reset IIS Manager user settings:

   Delete %USERPROFILE%\Documents\IISExpress\config\applicationhost.config

For automated environments, use this C# example:

using Microsoft.Web.Administration;

void GrantIISAccess(string user) {
    using (ServerManager serverManager = new ServerManager()) {
        Configuration config = serverManager.GetApplicationHostConfiguration();
        ConfigurationSection managementSection = config.GetSection("system.webServer/management");
        ConfigurationElementCollection usersCollection = managementSection.GetCollection("users");
        
        ConfigurationElement userElement = usersCollection.CreateElement("user");
        userElement["name"] = user;
        usersCollection.Add(userElement);
        
        serverManager.CommitChanges();
    }
}