FIX: SQL Server Cluster Setup May Fail on Third-Party Disk Drives

The Microsoft SQL Server Cluster Setup Wizard may fail to correctly identify the disk volume that SQL Server is installed on.

This incorrect identification occurs when the volume is controlled by a third-party custom-written resource DLL. Solutions such as IBM ServeRAID Logical Disks and Compaq Proliant Cluster Series S Model 100 are examples of such hardware available.

The SQL Server Cluster Setup program looks for SQL Server to be installed on a "Physical Disk" resource type. Any other resource type fails, even though it is a mass storage device that SQL Server is installed on.

The workaround involves either upgrading your SQL Server version to SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition or modifying the registry to redirect the SQL Server Cluster Setup program. This section instructs you on the registry modifications required.

You should also check with your hard disk vendor to confirm whether there are any known problems associated with changing their resource type. In the IBM example, the disks will not failover to the other cluster properly. Therefore the resource type must be changed several times for SQL Server Cluster Setup to work.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

1. Run RegEdit32 (Regedt32.exe) and locate the following key:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Cluster\Resources
   						

2. You will see several other keys within this key that are in a binary GUID form which follow the pattern:

   12354678-1234-1234-1234-1234567890ab.
   						

   Highlight each one individually, look in the right pane, and observe the Type value. Look for the name of your third-party disk resource and change it to "Physical Disk". Note that this is case sensitive.
3. Repeat this procedure on the other node of the cluster.

You should now be able to run the SQL Cluster Setup. In some cases you may need to change this back to the original resource type before failing the disk over to the other node.

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in SQL Server 6.5. This problem has been corrected in Service Pack 5a for Microsoft SQL Server 6.5.For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:For more information, contact your primary support provider.

ServeRAID is manufactured by IBM, a vendor independent of Microsoft; we make no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding this product's performance or reliability.