IIS 6 and php.ini not being friends

Hi. I have installed PHP ~ a dozen times on Windows and *nix systems, so I don't consider myself to be a newbie at this. However, I've run into a problem that I have run out of ideas. I have Google'd many sites and none of the suggestions provided worked for me. Specs: PHP 5.2.4 (Manual install) Windows (virtual) Server 2k3 IIS 6, ISAPI Ok, getting there... When I view phpinfo(), for the "Configuration File ( php.ini) Path" it shows C:\WINDOWS. However, I *know* that it's located in the PHP install directory: C:\php. I've put C:\php in my Windows PATH environment and I have even given "Everyone" full permissions on the .ini file - still no go. Thinking maybe I screwed something up in my .ini file, I tested both the recommended and dist .ini files with no changes - still no go. Yes, I restarted IIS each time and verified permissions a lot. Any suggestions for what might be happening? Why can't these just play nicely together? Is it possible the .ini file PHP provided is corrupt so it's falling back to the *default* .ini? Thanks in advance, ~Philip