Service and Infrastructure
The Report Server Windows service is a consolidated set of applications that run in a single process, under a single account, with access to a single report server database and set of configuration files. Configuration settings for the whole service are stored in RSeportServer.config, ReportServerServices.exe.config, and the report server database.
Within the service, Report Manager, the Web service, and background processing run in separate application domains. Although all three feature areas are enabled by default, you can configure which parts of the service are available at any given time. For example, you can turn off the Web service if you do not want to support on-demand or interactive reporting.
Although server feature areas are isolated into separate application domains, memory management and process health is managed for the service as a whole. Memory thresholds are configured for the service in its entirety. The report server handles recycle actions as internal operations. You cannot recycle individual parts of the service on demand. However, you can specify configuration settings that specify how long persistent connections are kept open.
If you segment the feature areas of a service among multiple instances (for example, enable Report Manager in one instance, the Web service in a second instance, and background processing in a third instance), the memory and configuration settings are scoped to the applications that run in that particular instance. Note that even if you segment the feature areas of the service, they are some interdependencies. A complete report server installation typically uses all three. For more information, see How to: Turn Reporting Services Features On or Off.
HTTP Listener
Reporting Services includes an HTTP listener that monitors incoming requests directed to HTTP.SYS on a specific port on the local computer. The host name and port are specified on a URL reservation when you configure the server. Depending on the operating system you are using, the port you specify can be shared with other applications.
The HTTP listener implements the HTTP 1.1 protocol. It uses the HTTP.SYS capabilities that are built into the operating system. It is for this reason that Reporting Services requires operating systems that include HTTP.SYS as an internal component.
When the HTTP listener processes a request, it forwards it to the authentication layer to verify the user identity. The Report Server Web service is called after the request is authenticated.
The HTTP Listener uses version 1.0 of the HTTP Server API. For more information, see HTTP Server API on MSDN.
Authentication Layer
Reporting Services includes an authentication layer that verifies the identity of the user or application that makes the request. The following authentication types are supported: Windows integrated security, NTLM authentication, Basic authentication, Forms or custom authentication, and Anonymous access. Reporting Services uses Windows integrated security and NTLM authentication by default, but you can specify a different authentication type in the configuration files. Each report server instance can be configured for exactly one authentication type. If you have a scale-out deployment configuration, each node in the environment must use the same authentication type.
Report server authentication operates within the context of your network security settings and client applications. The successful use of a particular authentication type depends on browser and network security features. For example, using Windows integrated security requires that you use Internet Explorer, you have Kerberos network authentication, and impersonation is enabled. Furthermore, if you want to use integrated security for report data source connections, you must also have delegation enabled to allow for subsequent connections to remote data sources.
For more information about authentication in Reporting Services, see Configuring Authentication in Reporting Services.