Meta Description: Learn how to streamline your web deployment by comparing Microsoft Web Deploy’s complexities with QuickDeploy’s one-command simplicity, customisable pipelines, and automatic HTTPS.

Deploying web applications shouldn’t feel like wrestling with a giant msbuild script. Whether you’re a web developer racing against the clock or an indie hacker launching a demo, you need a web deployment solution that’s fast, flexible and fuss-free. In this post, we pit Microsoft’s Web Deploy tool against QuickDeploy to show you how customising your deployment packages can be delightfully simple.

Why Customising Deployment Packages Matters

You want to include empty folders for uploads or cache.
You need to grant write access to specific directories.
You must skip deleting user-generated files on updates.
You’d love to embed a version or build number in the package name.
You crave total control over your infrastructure.

These customisations make the difference between a manual, error-prone process and a repeatable, reliable workflow. Let’s dive in.

Microsoft Web Deploy: Powerful but Complex

Microsoft’s Web Deploy has been around for years, automating the packaging of ASP.NET apps into ZIPs with rich MSBuild hooks. Its strengths:

Deep integration with Visual Studio and IIS
Fine-grained control via .wpp.targets and parameters.xml
Support for skip rules, setAcl providers, folder creation

But boy, the downsides:

You must author custom MSBuild targets by hand.
Interactive mode won’t honour skip rules for folders.
The generated .cmd script may point to an outdated MSDeploy registry key.
Configuration often means diving into Microsoft.Web.Publishing.targets.
It ties you to Windows, IIS and Visual Studio installations.

For many teams, this complexity leads to frustration, wasted hours and deployment drift.

QuickDeploy: Simple, Fast and Flexible

Imagine deploying any web app to your own VPS with one command. That’s QuickDeploy.

One-Command Deployment

With the QuickDeploy Tool, just run:

quickdeploy --source ./dist --domain example.com

And you’re live in under five minutes. No manual scripts. No hidden dependencies.

Effortless Customisation

QuickDeploy offers built-in flags to:

Include empty folders like ./uploads
Skip deletion of user files on updates
Set ACLs automatically for write or read access
Append version numbers using --version 1.2.3

No more wrestling with XML or regex‐based skip rules.

Automatic HTTPS and SSL

Let QuickDeploy handle certificates for you. It obtains and renews HTTPS automatically, ensuring your site is secure without manual intervention.

Full Control on Your VPS

You own the infrastructure. QuickDeploy simply builds an optimized Docker container and deploys it. No vendor lock-in, no surprises.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	Microsoft Web Deploy	QuickDeploy
Command line setup	Complex MSBuild + custom targets	Single `quickdeploy` command
Custom package pipeline	Manual `.wpp.targets` and XML tweaks	Flags and config file
Skip rules in interactive mode	Not supported	Fully supported
Automatic HTTPS	Manual certificate configuration	End-to-end auto SSL
Framework support	ASP.NET, IIS-only	Next.js, Docker, versatile
Deployment speed	~30–60 minutes setup + scripts	Under 5 minutes
Hosting control	Windows Server only	Any VPS with Docker

Getting Started with QuickDeploy

Install via npm or Homebrew:
npm install -g quickdeploy
Initialise your project:
quickdeploy init
Deploy in one line:
quickdeploy --source ./build --domain myapp.dev --version 2.0.0

That’s it. You’ve just transformed your web deployment process into an automated, reliable pipeline.

Conclusion

Web deployment shouldn’t be a chore. While Microsoft Web Deploy packs powerful features, its complexity can slow you down. QuickDeploy fills those gaps: one command, built-in customisation, rapid rollouts, and automatic HTTPS. If you value time and autonomy, QuickDeploy is the tool you’ve been waiting for.

Ready to simplify your next deployment?
👉 Visit https://quickdeploy.dev and ship your web app in minutes.