Document-relative parent path being ignored by web server - Classic ASP, include files

I've been working with ASP and Windows servers for over a decade and this is the first time I've encountered this. I also posted over at the Adobe site, but this may impact WA users who still use ASP extensions.

GoDaddy informed us that our current hosting platform was on its way out and we should migrate to the new servers. This involved a site built with classic ASP and MSSQL. I migrated the database using SQL Server Management Studio without any problems.

But on the new site, I noticed that ASP include files did not work when they were a level or more above the host file. FOr example, a file in a 1st-level sub-folder referenced the Connections folder via the typical include using "../Connections/". The page produced an internal server error (the server is also ignoring the web config file that is supposed to display detailed error messages). I verified this by copying the Connections folder to the same level and editing the include path accordingly and it worked.

This also affected all include files that were placed by WA extensions. I also noticed some other issues that seemed to be either due to the web server, or, the current version of DW CC.

I'd like to know if anyone else has migrated or built a site in ASP on the GoDaddy Windows Plesk hosting accounts and if you noticed similar issues. And yes, this was the last site I built using ASP - I switched over to PHP and MySQL and haven't looked back.

One source I came across indicated that parent paths are not enabled by default in a Windows server.

This affects all WA extensions I've used, as well as the typical include to the Connections folder placed by Dreamweaver itself.

My solution was too install DW CS6 which is available with the CC membership. This version of DW is much for WA extension friendly, and I don't see any reason to use any of the CC versions at this point

Question: When setting up a site definition, one of the settings is whether to use document or root relative links. Does this setting affect how WA configures it's include files? I can see where it affects simple things like the typical hyperlinks and insert image paths, but then are are various include files for ASP and PHP and paths to CSS files like what are used in Menu Writer.

I've always used docuent relative paths but what are the pros and cons which to use, especially when it comes to WA extensions?

Both the default Dreamweaver server behaviors as well as WebAssist's will change the syntax of include files based on that setting. It is best to use document relative paths in almost all cases unless specifically required to use absolute for some reason.

Thanks Ray for the confirmation.

I was also able to confirm that I had to manually enable Parent Paths in the Plesk Control panel. This, as mentioned above, is on GoDaddy Windows. I can't say whether its the same for other hosts, Linux or whatever else.

The solution was to go under "Virtual Directories" and select the host directory, and the option was in there.