Quorum drive on a network share

Around 2001 or so, I set up a test system for SQL Server 2000 clustering on
Windows 2000 Enterprise with a two-node cluster running generic workstation
hardware, without a shared storage device.

In place of the shared storage device, we used a method of mounting a
network share as a local disk on both cluster nodes to hold the quorum.

I now need to do something similar again on 2003 Enterprise with SQL 2005,
but my memory has failed me as to the name (and method) of the technology
used to create the quorum share. Reading round the subject has failed to jog
my memory. In all honesty, I beginning to wonder whether I might be
remembering wrong.

Can anybody tell me how I might have achieved the original setup on Windows
2000?

Is this still possible with Windows 2003

I know the MS documentation states you have to use shared storage. Did you
use a 3rd party utility to create virtual disks and mount those? Something
like: http://software.techrepublic.com.com...x?docid=736751

TruCrypt will let you create a virtual disk and mount it as local storage.

I suspect you might be able to do the same thing creating a VHD file and
using VHDmount to mount the virtual hard disk. You can install only the
VHDMount components and don't have to install Virtual Server.
http://www.petri.co.il/mounting-vhd-...h-vhdmount.htm

HTH

"Ed Harper" wrote:

> Around 2001 or so, I set up a test system for SQL Server 2000 clustering on
> Windows 2000 Enterprise with a two-node cluster running generic workstation
> hardware, without a shared storage device.
>
> In place of the shared storage device, we used a method of mounting a
> network share as a local disk on both cluster nodes to hold the quorum.
>
> I now need to do something similar again on 2003 Enterprise with SQL 2005,
> but my memory has failed me as to the name (and method) of the technology
> used to create the quorum share. Reading round the subject has failed to jog
> my memory. In all honesty, I beginning to wonder whether I might be
> remembering wrong.
>
> Can anybody tell me how I might have achieved the original setup on Windows
> 2000?
>
> Is this still possible with Windows 2003

Thanks for the suggestion.

I've read about using the virtual disk solution in a couple of places, but
(as far as I can recall) the original solution was using *some technology*
native to Windows Enterprise Edition. But I think I must just be mistaken.

In any case, I'll try the virtual disk idea.

"Rick Bridges" wrote:

> I know the MS documentation states you have to use shared storage. Did you
> use a 3rd party utility to create virtual disks and mount those? Something
> like: http://software.techrepublic.com.com...x?docid=736751
>
> TruCrypt will let you create a virtual disk and mount it as local storage.
>
> I suspect you might be able to do the same thing creating a VHD file and
> using VHDmount to mount the virtual hard disk. You can install only the
> VHDMount components and don't have to install Virtual Server.
> http://www.petri.co.il/mounting-vhd-...h-vhdmount.htm
>
> HTH
>
> "Ed Harper" wrote:
>
> > Around 2001 or so, I set up a test system for SQL Server 2000 clustering on
> > Windows 2000 Enterprise with a two-node cluster running generic workstation
> > hardware, without a shared storage device.
> >
> > In place of the shared storage device, we used a method of mounting a
> > network share as a local disk on both cluster nodes to hold the quorum.
> >
> > I now need to do something similar again on 2003 Enterprise with SQL 2005,
> > but my memory has failed me as to the name (and method) of the technology
> > used to create the quorum share. Reading round the subject has failed to jog
> > my memory. In all honesty, I beginning to wonder whether I might be
> > remembering wrong.
> >
> > Can anybody tell me how I might have achieved the original setup on Windows
> > 2000?
> >
> > Is this still possible with Windows 2003

In the end, I used Rocket Division's StarWind to create an iSCSI share. I've
no idea whether this is what I did originally, but it works very well.

see http://www.rocketdivision.com/info/s..._mscluster.pdf for details

"Ed Harper" wrote:

> Around 2001 or so, I set up a test system for SQL Server 2000 clustering on
> Windows 2000 Enterprise with a two-node cluster running generic workstation
> hardware, without a shared storage device.
>
> In place of the shared storage device, we used a method of mounting a
> network share as a local disk on both cluster nodes to hold the quorum.
>
> I now need to do something similar again on 2003 Enterprise with SQL 2005,
> but my memory has failed me as to the name (and method) of the technology
> used to create the quorum share. Reading round the subject has failed to jog
> my memory. In all honesty, I beginning to wonder whether I might be
> remembering wrong.
>
> Can anybody tell me how I might have achieved the original setup on Windows
> 2000?
>
> Is this still possible with Windows 2003

"Ed Harper" <Ed > wrote in message
news:0F7C1420-14B0-4689-B6A5-...
> Around 2001 or so, I set up a test system for SQL Server 2000 clustering
> on
> Windows 2000 Enterprise with a two-node cluster running generic
> workstation
> hardware, without a shared storage device.
>
> In place of the shared storage device, we used a method of mounting a
> network share as a local disk on both cluster nodes to hold the quorum.

I don't know how you did that as it doesn't work to the best of my knowledge
and it isn't supported. Perhaps you are confusing setting up a connection
with a NetApp device or something like that.

> I now need to do something similar again on 2003 Enterprise with SQL 2005,
> but my memory has failed me as to the name (and method) of the technology
> used to create the quorum share. Reading round the subject has failed to
> jog
> my memory. In all honesty, I beginning to wonder whether I might be
> remembering wrong.

You can't do it. You need to use a truely shared storage configuration such
as an external SCSI device or array, a fibre storage area network, or an
iSCSI storage area network.


--
Russ Kaufmann,
MVP, MCSE: Messaging and Security, MCT, MCITP, MCTS and other stuff

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