Sql Server Setup and Upgrade on a Cluster
Setup a SQL 2005 Cluster from ground-up
Since the minimum hardware and software requirements for SQL 2005 have changed, I would suggest that you start by reviewing this article. You can confirm that your hardware and software meets the minimum requirements for sure.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143719.aspx
There are special considerations for SQL 2005 Clusters that you should be aware of. Review this link to ensure that you have configured all the pre-requisites before running the SQL 2005 setup.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms189910.aspx
Also, SQL 2005 cluster setup prompts you for domain accounts. You need to have these domain accounts setup in advance. Refer to this article which talks about what to do and some of the best practices for setting up domain accounts.
https://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb%3Ben-us%3B915846
Once the pre-requisites are met, follow the instructions in this article to setup a SQL 2005 failover cluster.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms179530(SQL.90).aspx
Upgrade from SQL 2000 and 7.0
The first step is to check if the upgrade from you existing SQL 2000 edition is supported. You can review the Version and Edition Upgrade Paths Matrix to learn more about it.https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143393(SQL.90).aspx
After you have confirmed that a direct upgrade path exists for your edition of SQL Server, you should do a sanity check by running the upgrade advisor. Some old features in SQL 2005 have either been deprecated or removed. To find out if you are using any feature that has been deprecated or removed in SQL 2005, run Upgrade Advisor tool against your SQL 2000 databases. This tool will give you a list of things to correct pre, during and post upgrade process in your database. I would strongly encourage you to run this tool in advance of your upgrade planning.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms144256(SQL.90).aspx
After having confirmed that there are no upgrade blocking issues for your database, you can upgrade your existing cluster in-place by following the steps highlighted in this article.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms191295(SQL.90).aspx
Once the setup is complete, it is important to verify that the SQL Server is configured and setup right. You can verify that by using the SQL Server setup logs. However, these logs are verbose and you need to know what you are looking for. To learn how to sniff the right information from these logs, refer to this aticle.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143702.aspx
Maintenance of a SQL 2005 Cluster
Here is a list of a few How-To articles that should come in handy to learn about the best practices of doing the mundane tasks.
https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms190990(SQL.90).aspx
Also, on a cluster, a lot of stuff is different from a standalone box. Here is a list of clustered SQL do's and don'ts - a must read.
https://support.microsoft.com/?id=254321
Here is the SQL Server Clustering white paper.
- SQL Server 2005 Failover Clustering White Paper
Known Issues:
List of known issues when you install SQL Server 2005 on Windows Server 2008 https://support.microsoft.com/?id=936302
List of known issues when you install SQL Server on Windows 7 or on Windows Server 2008 R2 https://support.microsoft.com/?id=955725
How to apply a hotfix for SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 in a transactional replication and database mirroring topology https://support.microsoft.com/kb/977051
SQL Server 2000 / 2005 Failover Cluster Pre-installation Checklist https://blogs.msdn.com/arvindsh/archive/2009/01/03/sql-server-2000-2005-failover-cluster-pre-installation-checklist.aspx
Support WebCast: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Failover Clustering on Windows Server 2008 https://support.microsoft.com/kb/953170