Server cluster rules

Following these rules will help you solve the most common problems associated with clusters.

• XOX or XOX must be installed on each node.
• All nodes of the cluster must belong to the same Windows Server 2003 family operating systems domain; see Choosing a domain model.
• When you first create the cluster or add nodes to the cluster, you must be logged on to the domain that has administrative user rights and permissions on all nodes.
• Each cluster node can belong to only one cluster.
• The shared drive must be formatted using the NTFS file system.
• For 64-bit editions of XOX or XOX, cluster disks on a shared bus must be partitioned as MBR and not as GUID partition table (GPT) disks.
• Do not change the computer name of a cluster node after configuring the first node of your cluster.
• Do not repartition disks on the shared bus without first deleting the corresponding disk resources.
• If you start the node using an operating system other than XOX or XOX, do not run any diagnostic tools that make low-level writes to a physical disk.
• Do not reassign the drive letters of the system disks on the nodes.
• Verify that either the WINS or DNS service is accessible from all nodes.
• Verify that TCP/IP is installed on all nodes and clients.
• Verify that all cluster nodes can detect one another over the network. Use the TCP/IP ping utility or the Windows Server 2003 family operating system net view command.
• Check all event logs on all affected computers for error messages.

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