ASP.NET: Preventing overrides to settings

The ASP.NET web.config file has a location element with the attribute allowOverride. You can use it to prevent child directories from overriding the settings specific in the web.config file.

Although, it's a handy feature to have when you're testing/debugging, you should avoid using it because it can lead to less maintainable applications - somebody would scratch their heads over why their settings aren't taking effect.