"HTTP Error 403.14 - Forbidden" error when you open an IIS 7.0 Webpage

Symptoms

You have a Web site that is hosted on Internet Information Services (IIS) 7.0. When you visit the Web site in a Web browser, you may receive an error message that resembles the following:

Server Error in Application "application name"

HTTP Error 403.14 - Forbidden

HRESULT: 0x00000000

Description of HRESULT : The Web server is configured to not list the contents of this directory.

Resolution

For end-users

If you are an end-user, you should contact the website administrators in order to let them know that this error has occurred for this URL address. Then, the website administrators will fix this issue later.

For site administrators

This problem occurs because the Web site does not have the Directory Browsing feature enabled, and the default document is not configured. To resolve this problem, use one of the following methods:

Method 1: Enable the Directory Browsing feature in IIS (Recommended)

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

1. Start IIS Manager. To do this, click Start, click Run, type inetmgr.exe, and then click OK.
2. In IIS Manager, expand server name, expand Web sites, and then click the website that you want to modify.
3. In the Features view, double-click Directory Browsing.
4. In the Actions pane, click Enable.

Method 2: Add a default document

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

1. Start IIS Manager. To do this, click Start, click Run, type inetmgr.exe, and then click OK.
2. In IIS Manager, expand server name, expand Web sites, and then click the website that you want to modify.
3. In the Features view, double-click Default Document.
4. In the Actions pane, click Enable.
5. In the File Name box, type the name of the default document, and then click OK.

Method 3: Enable the Directory Browsing feature in IIS Express

Note This method is for the web developers who experience the issue when they use IIS Express.

To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open a command prompt, and then go to the IIS Express folder on your computer. For example, go to the following folder in a command prompt: 
   

   C:\Program Files\IIS Express

2. Type the following command, and then press Enter: 
   appcmd set config /section:directoryBrowse /enabled:true