When I try to deploy the sample reports solution to the local IIS on this
win2003 server, the message "A connection could not be made to the report
server http://a1900/Reportserver" appears.
I do this by:
1. Loading the SampleReports.sln into the vb.net IDE.
2. Right-clicking on the SampleReports solution, then selecting Properties,
then setting 'TargetServer URL'=http://a1900/Reportserver (it also fails
when I set it to 'http://localhost/ReportServer'
3. Right-clicking on the SampleReports solution, then selecting 'Deploy'.
4. No errors during the build phase.

The IIS Manager window shows in the left pane:

iis information services
- a1900 (local computer)
-FTP Sites
--...
-Web Sites
-- Default Web Site
---_vti_bin
---reports
--- reportServer
etc.
-Web Service Extensions
.....

The IIS is on the same machine that I operate on and has entries of 'Default
Web Site\Reportserver' and 'Default Web Site\Reports'. The 'Default Website'
has 'Permissions' set to 'Full control' for administrators, as which I am
logged in.
I notice that the 'Reports' and 'ReportServer' entries do not have the blue
globe icon (?) that most of the other IIS folder entries have. Perhaps
that's the cause of my problem.
Do I have to add Web service extensions for Reporting Services?
Perhaps the Reporting services installation did not go right?
How do I find the correct url for the target server?
Where do I have to look.
What books to read?
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

Some questions & answers:

"Do I have to add Web service extensions for Reporting Services? "
No.

"How do I find the correct url for the target server?"
You are using the correct URL. To test it manually, navigate to the
following path:

http://localhost/ReportServer/ReportService.asmx

This is the webservice that the "Deploy" option uses based upon the
"TargetServer" property you set in the Project settings.

You should receive a SOAP response (XML) w-hen you navigate to that
URL. If you do not get this, then you may have an IIS configuration
problem. Because of the security configurations needed, I generally
just reinstall Reporting Services to make sure the Virtual Directory
and permissions are setup properly. In IIS 6, you should see what
looks like a cog/gear as the symbol for the ReportServer virtual
directory. The globes are for websites (DefaultWeb and such) which
isnt required.

One other thing to check is if your DefaultWebsite is using port 80,
and accepts "(All Unassigned)" IP addresses. Anything unusual in
these IIS settings may indicate part of your problem.

I hope this helps a bit...

~Lance Hunt
http://weblogs.asp.net/lhunt/