Hello,
I am currently designing a deployment; where the requirements are of Network load balancing and Microsoft Clustering:
Although I am done with the MSCS already but here the scenario is different :
- there are 3 hosts and each host will facilite 4 VMs means total 12 VMs in a VI
- OS of VMs are RHEL and WIN2k8
- i need to configure MSCS on different Vms across the hosts
- I need to configure NLB on different VMs (other than MSCS)
- there is enough storage.
my questions are as:
- Do i need to present different LUNs to each MSCS enables VMs group suppose if I am doing 3 MSCS(6 VMs) do i need to configure 3 LUNs for each microsoft cluster.
- Do I need anything extra in terms of hardware resources like extra NICs for NLB services except special drivers?
- Can I enable NLB on RHEL Vms?
Any special tip is more than welcome...
thanks,
Kaashif
Clustering and NLB in VMs is not really that different from doing it in a physical world.
The main difference is that in the VM world, you will be responsible for the networks and the storage parts of your set up.
You will still need "heartbeat" NICs adding to your VMs and all your ESX hosts will have to be aware of this network.
Your storage (clustered) needs to be shared amongst your VMs.
This doc explains MS clustering very well for cluster in a host, cluster across hosts and how to cluster physical with virtual.
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_35/esx_3/vi3_35_25_u1_mscs.pdf
Hello,
Also refer to http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/implmenting_ms_network_load_balancing.pdf for NLB help.
Best regards,
Edward L. Haletky
VMware Communities User Moderator, VMware vExpert 2009
====
Author of the book 'VMWare ESX Server in the Enterprise: Planning and Securing Virtualization Servers', Copyright 2008 Pearson Education.
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In ESX 3.5 I'm not sure that MSCS 2008 (Failvorer Cluster) is supported.
It needs SCSI 3 reservation, and only vSphere will provide this feature.
Il you have an iSCSI storage you can by-pass this problem using the initiator inside Windows 2008 to connect directly the iSCSI LUNs/Volumes for the cluster.
Andrea
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The maximum supported in ESX is a 2 node MSCS cluster.
I would recommend only doing NLB in multicast mode. Unicast mode gets messy even with the correct settings on the port group and isn't supported.
David Strebel
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