2 Windows 2008R2: Create Microsoft Failover Cluster

This is my note for how to create the 2 nodes failover cluster.

Enable Failover Cluster from GUI

Perform below steps on N1

Add “Failover clustering” in the node 1.

Enable Failover Cluster from PowerShell

On the node 2, I used Power Shell.

Perform below steps on N1

Import-Module ServerManager

Get-WindowsFeature

Add-WindowsFeature Failover-clustering

Enable-PSRemoting -force

Prepare ISCSI

I use Cluster command to create the cluster

# configure  Cluster

cluster /cluster:SGCCluster1 /create /nodes:"SGC6 SGC7" /ipaddr: 192.168.116.120/255.255.255.0

Configure the network

The Cluster pair has three networks:

• iSCSI network: 192.168.126.0/24 for SAN communication
• Private network: 10.0.0.0/24 for nodes communication
• Public network: 192.168.116/0/24 for cluster public access

use PowerShell to manage Cluster

Import-Module FailoverClusters

Get-Command -Module FailoverClusters

Get-ClusterGroup -cluster "SGCCluster1"

# Failover Cluster 

Move-ClusterGroup -Cluster "SGCCluster1" -name "cluster Group" -node "SGC7"

Move-ClusterGroup -Cluster "SGCCluster1" -name "Available Storage" -node "SGC7"

Move-ClusterGroup -Cluster "SGCCluster1" -name "cluster Group" -node "SGC6"

Move-ClusterGroup -Cluster "SGCCluster1" -name "Available Storage" -node "SGC6"

Test-cluster -node SGC6,SGC7 -ignore storage

#Remove Cluster

Get-ClusterNode -cluster "SGCCluster1"

Remove-ClusterNode -cluster "SGCCluster1" SGC6 -force

# Add the node back

Get-ClusterNode -cluster "SGCCluster1"

Add-ClusterNode -Cluster "SGCCluster1" -Name SGC6

Get-ClusterNode -cluster "SGCCluster1"

Issues

There are two primary issues I encounter during the configure cluster.

1. system error 1460 during the forming cluster.

2. Even ID 1207:

Cluster network name resource 'Cluster Name' cannot be brought online. The computer object associated with the resource could not be updated in domain 'stargate.com' for the following reason:
Unable to get Computer Object using GUID.

This is when even I can create the cluster, but fail to bring up the cluster resource online. The domain controller does has the computer object with Cluster name but there is no correspond record.

After spending many research, both of the issues are correlated it. I have to change two setting to fix them:

1. DNS setting: allow Dynamic update with secure and nonsecure

2. Group policy “Access this computer from the network”

After configure the correct group policy, run the gpupdate /force on the DC and nodes.

Reference

• http://blogs.msdn.com/b/clustering/archive/2009/07/17/9836756.aspx 
• http://blogs.technet.com/b/askcore/archive/2012/03/27/why-is-the-cno-in-a-failed-state.aspx