Micosoft Cluster configurations - What to do with IIS and SQL

[ChristerZ]

Hello

I have a band new vSphere cluster with 3 hosts. Now I'm about to create my SQL servers and IIS servers. I'm configuring IIS to use Network Loadbalancing and I was thinking of using Microsoft Failover Cluster in win 2008 for my SQL servers. But after checking this doc out it seems clear that my configuration is not supported. I have an iSCSI SAN and I have my hosts clustered. So what is the best way to cluster my SQL servers within vmware?

Thanks

[mreferre]

A few thoughts to think about:

http://it20.info/blogs/main/archive/2008/03/26/102.aspx

Massimo.

[krowczynski]

You are right, MS CLuster is not supported with iSCSI SAN.

Why not install one machine as a VM in an HA VM Cluster?

And if you do not need more than one vcpu, put FT on.

[ChristerZ]

Thanks for your answers,

Well, my biggest issue with just using FT and HA is that I would like to be able to shorten my service window. I only have 2h once a month to apply updates and restart my machines. Sometimes that is giving my alot of trouble. So I would like to be able to reboot one machine while the other is taking care of business and then once the first machine is up, restart the second one. With FT, I'm guessing if I restart one, the other will restart as well?

Maybe there's another solution for me?

[krowczynski]

Well, with FT if one machine went down (e.g The Master) the second machine (Slave) continues working.

[mreferre · Accepted solution]

Interesting, you raise a good point.

I have never thought about the downtime of the single VM in a VMware HA scenario vs two separate VMs in an MSCS scenario.

Obviously in such a perspective FT would be of no use as the second hidden VM shadows what the master does... if you are servicing the master the slave gets serviced as well at the very same point in time.

If 2 hours is not enough to deal with a single VM I think your only choice is to remain on a physical cluster. I went through the limitations in the new vSphere pdf you posted above and they are even worse than before. I don't see how one could ever use MSCS on vSphere if they keep these limitations.

Massimo.

[ChristerZ]

2 hours is good enough for patching and doing maintenance. It's the month I have to wait to do it that is the problem. Looks like I either have to try and get more frequent service windows or move them to physical machines

Thanks for your input guys!

[krowczynski]

Unfortunately you have to move back to ohysical world unless you haven't got DibreChannel.

We also have a P2V MS SQL Cluster (1 physical Dell 1950 an one VM) on iSCSI although it is not supported.

But I think in future I will only have one machine in an VM Cluster.

[mreferre]

I see.

However you will have a bit of downtime while moving the SQL resource from one node to another even on a physical cluster (I'll take that that is not an issue).

You can always touch it once a month ..... there are people that haven't been patching their Windows servers for years!

Massimo.

[LucasAlbers]

microsoft does not support iscsi for clustering?

Have you had success running the backup ms sql machine as a vm via ms clustering?

[krowczynski]

VM Ware does not support iscsi for mscluster?

I am backing up the vm ms sql with vcb.

As Backupsoftware we are using BackupExec 12.5.