Here's where I got yesterday:

 1. If you install IIS after you've installed the .net framework you will have problems. You need to choose  Add/Remove Programs on your start menu then choose the .net framework and choose Repair.

2. I think the Install documentation is more geared toward installing the source code on a Windows 2000 or Windows 2003 server. I played around with several different things for setting file permissions. In the end I removed the "Everyone" and added both the ASPNET and IUSR_MACHINENAME accounts and gave them full control. (Whether I needed both, I'm not sure. )

3. IIS - I had to select more than just the Read option under the Virtual Directory tab. I gave it Script Access, Read, Write, etc. Everything. I also right clicked on my DotNetNuke virtual server and choose All Tasks/Permissions Wizard and told it to be Public Website.

4. For the version I'm using (4.05.05), you have to move the config/dotnetnuke.config to the website root.

After all this - I ran http://localhost/DotNetNuke/install/install.aspx?mode=install

It didn't look like anything at all was happening. I shut it down and did it again. Big nothing again. I shut down my machine and restarted. Same thing. After disregarding the notion to fling my laptop out the window, I thought to go to install/installwizard

Aha! I got the message: "Dotnetnuke has already been installed on this machine". I took a look at the database - sure enough. It was filled with lovely tables.

I browsed back to here: http://localhost/DotNetNuke/Default.aspx

Received the below error. So. I'm not sure if it did completely install, but it sure as heck looks like a step forward. I'm not sure what else it would need to install besides running a sql scrip to create the tables/procs, etc. At this point I'm contemplating whether I should uninstall it (gah) and reinstall it or just try to fix whatever's going wrong now. I'm a tad concerned because everything I've read seems to indicate that I should have received some sort of status page.

Exception Details: System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.

Source Error:

An unhandled exception was generated during the execution of the current web request. Information regarding the origin and location of the exception can be identified using the exception stack trace below.

Stack Trace:

[NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.]
   DotNetNuke.Entities.Portals.PortalSettings.GetPortalSettings(Int32 TabId, PortalAliasInfo objPortalAliasInfo) +91
   DotNetNuke.Entities.Portals.PortalSettings..ctor(Int32 tabId, PortalAliasInfo objPortalAliasInfo) +83
   DotNetNuke.HttpModules.UrlRewriteModule.OnBeginRequest(Object s, EventArgs e) +2750
   System.Web.SyncEventExecutionStep.System.Web.HttpApplication.IExecutionStep.Execute() +92
   System.Web.HttpApplication.ExecuteStep(IExecutionStep step, Boolean& completedSynchronously) +64
 
I thought maybe the install didn't happen properly because I never got any messages indicating that it had installed. So I made a new database in sql server 2005 (so I could preserve the one that actually was created ) and followed this article to try again:

http://www.mitchelsellers.com/Blogs/tabid/54/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/119/Installing-DotNetNuke-455-Locally.aspx

Before, I was using the "medium" security web.config, but I also commented that out in case that was the problem. Unfortunately not.

This time I'm only getting

This site is currently Unavailable

Please check back later

The things I've checked -- I've given total and complete control of the folders to the ASPNET user. My database connection string is just fine. I think this might be some kind of security thing but I swear I don't know what it is. The run script was able to get to the database because it created a Version table before stopping.

I have faith that this will work eventually. And I'm not thinking it's a DNN thing - I'm assuming it's something I'm doing wrong. But I really really really don't know what it is.