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Create a cluster

  • Article

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To create a cluster

  1. Open Cluster Administrator.

  2. In the Open Connection to Cluster dialog box that appears, in Action, select Create new cluster, then click OK.

  3. The New Server Cluster Wizard appears. Click Next to continue.

    Important

    • During the cluster creation process (using the Quorum button on the Proposed Cluster Configuration page) you will be able to select a quorum resource type (that is, a Local Quorum resource, Physical Disk or other storage class device resource, or Majority Node Set resource). For information on how these quorum resource types relate to the different cluster models, see "Choosing a cluster model" in Related Topics.

  4. Upon completion of the New Server Cluster Wizard, click Finish.

Caution

  • If you are using a shared storage device, when you power on and start the operating system, it is of vital importance that only one node has access to the cluster disk. Otherwise the cluster disks can become corrupted. To prevent the corruption of the cluster disks, shut down all but one cluster node, or use other techniques (for example, Logical Unit Number or LUN masking, selective presentation, or zoning) to protect the cluster disks, before creating the cluster. Once the Cluster service is running properly on one node, the other nodes can be added and configured simultaneously.

  • When creating a server cluster, all nodes in the cluster must have the same system default locale. That is, the language and country or region selected during the installation of the operating system on each node must be the same. For more information on changing the system default locale, see "To change number, currency, time, and date settings" in Related Topics.

Important

  • When you create a cluster, Physical Disk resources will be automatically created for cluster disks that use drive letters. However, if your cluster disks use mount points, Physical Disk resources will not be automatically created for those disks; you must manually create disk resources for cluster disks that use mount points. For more information on how to do this, see "Checklist: Installing a Physical Disk resource" in Related Topics.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure.

  • To open Cluster Administrator, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Cluster Administrator.

  • You can also open the New Server Cluster Wizard from the File menu, by clicking New, then clicking Cluster.

  • You can safely cancel and restart the installation process at any time.

  • A majority node set server cluster is best used in controlled, targeted scenarios, as part of a cluster solution offered by your Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), Independent Software Vendor (ISV), or Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV). The single quorum device server cluster, the standard cluster model available in Windows NT and Windows 2000, will still cover the vast majority of your cluster deployment needs.

  • Of the default resource types, only the Physical Disk, Local Quorum, or Majority Node Set resource can be a quorum resource. However, third party vendors can supply other storage class resource types that are quorum capable.

    If you want to change the disk used for the quorum resource after creating the cluster, see "Use a different disk for the quorum resource" in Related Topics.

  • To create and configure a cluster after an unattended setup, run a script to invoke the cluster /create: command and supply all the necessary configuration information on the command line. For information about unattended setup, see "Planning for unattended setup" in Related Topics. For more information on the cluster command line syntax, see "Cluster" in Related Topics.

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Quorum resource
Checklist: Installing a Local Quorum resource
Choosing a Cluster Model
Planning for unattended Setup
Cluster
Checklist: Installing a Physical Disk resource
Use a different disk for the quorum resource