Cluster upgrade/migration issue advice.

Hey all,

We have a simple two-node x86 failover cluster attached to a SAN on which SQL Server 2005 runs. We recently bought two new x64 boxes to upgrade the cluster. My original plan was to just add the new nodes to the existing cluster and then remove the old nodes from the cluster, but I just found out that you can't mix architecture types in a cluster.

So far, it seems our choices are:

1) Install x86 Windows 2003 Server on the new nodes, losing performance.
2) Make a new cluster and migrate the data, possibly imposing downtime.

Anyone have any suggestions?You may be able to "swing" the LUNs from one cluster to the other, without much trouble. This depends on a number of factors, so you should contact your SAN vendor to see if it is feasible. If it is, then you build the 64-bit cluster, swing the LUNs over, attach all the DBs to the 64-bit instance of SQL Server, and then change all the applications that pointed to the old cluster. One caution, though, you should definitely take a real nice backup of all the databases, before you do the LUN switch, since you could potentially lose all of your databases to an inadvertent FORMAT command.|||Yeah, I think that's going to be the option we go with, since we can attach the new servers to the old LUNs, but that will involve some downtime.

I suppose we could replicate the dbs to a third server, update the important connections to point to the replicated server, do the move, point the connections to the new cluster.

Ugh.

cluster install 2nd node unavailable

Hi all,

Try to install sql 2005 x64 on a Win2003r2 x64 two node cluster.
All looks fine as far I get to the "cluster node configuration" dialog.
My second node is always displayed as "unavailable node" reason "unknown".

- I checked the logfiles but could not find any error.
- Installation user & cluster user are both local admins.
- Tried with sql 2005 x32 version -> same result.

What do I miss out here?
Any help is highly appreciated.

TIA
acki

as mentioned above installing the sql 2005 x32 Version results in same state -> node unavailable reason unknown

If try to install sql 2000 x32 my two nodes show up as configured nodes installation would continue without errors.

Any help is highly appreciated !

TIA
acki

|||Check the SQL error log, cluster log and event viewer log for more information.|||

Satya,

None of the logs shows anything unusual !

|||Can you check thru this http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms179530.aspx link and confirm whether you have following in same fashion.|||

Satya,
I know the mentioned kb article.
I'm not a newbe in installing sql server clusters, have done it a dozent times (x32) but never had troubles like this.

At the beginning setupjob checks BOTH nodes for possible installation. All looks fine there!
As mentioned already non of the logs (eventlog, clusterlog, sql inst. log) shows anything unusual or error (in my eyes).
Prerequisits and pre installation steps are all done...

The funny thing is installing a sql 2000 (x32) cluster would work (so there could nothing be wrong with the cluster inst.)

|||

ok, after setting up a packet sniffer and running behind the bits and bytes I finally found the solution to this problem.

Make sure the "Remote Registry" service is running on second (inactive) node!

HTH
acki

cluster install 2nd node unavailable

Hi all,

Try to install sql 2005 x64 on a Win2003r2 x64 two node cluster.
All looks fine as far I get to the "cluster node configuration" dialog.
My second node is always displayed as "unavailable node" reason "unknown".

- I checked the logfiles but could not find any error.
- Installation user & cluster user are both local admins.
- Tried with sql 2005 x32 version -> same result.

What do I miss out here?
Any help is highly appreciated.

TIA
acki

as mentioned above installing the sql 2005 x32 Version results in same state -> node unavailable reason unknown

If try to install sql 2000 x32 my two nodes show up as configured nodes installation would continue without errors.

Any help is highly appreciated !

TIA
acki

|||Check the SQL error log, cluster log and event viewer log for more information.|||

Satya,

None of the logs shows anything unusual !

|||Can you check thru this http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms179530.aspx link and confirm whether you have following in same fashion.|||

Satya,
I know the mentioned kb article.
I'm not a newbe in installing sql server clusters, have done it a dozent times (x32) but never had troubles like this.

At the beginning setupjob checks BOTH nodes for possible installation. All looks fine there!
As mentioned already non of the logs (eventlog, clusterlog, sql inst. log) shows anything unusual or error (in my eyes).
Prerequisits and pre installation steps are all done...

The funny thing is installing a sql 2000 (x32) cluster would work (so there could nothing be wrong with the cluster inst.)

|||

ok, after setting up a packet sniffer and running behind the bits and bytes I finally found the solution to this problem.

Make sure the "Remote Registry" service is running on second (inactive) node!

HTH
acki