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This article was previously published under Q258750
Communication between Server Cluster nodes is critical for smooth cluster operations. Therefore, you must configure the networks that you use for cluster communication are configured optimally and follow all hardware compatibility list requirements. For networking configuration, two or more independent networks must connect the nodes of a cluster to avoid a single point of failure. The use of two local area networks (LANs) is typical. (Microsoft Product Support Services does not support the configuration of a cluster with nodes connected by only one network.)
At least two of the cluster networks must be configured to support heartbeat communication between the cluster nodes to avoid a single point of failure. To do so, configure the roles of these networks as either "Internal Cluster Communications Only" or "All Communications" for the Cluster service. Typically, one of these networks is a private interconnect dedicated to internal cluster communication.
Additionally, each cluster network must fail independently of all other cluster networks. This means that two cluster networks must not have a component in common that can cause both to fail simultaneously. For example, the use of a multiport network adapter to attach a node to two cluster networks would not satisfy this requirement in most cases because the ports are not independent.
To eliminate possible communication issues, remove all unnecessary network traffic from the network adapter that is set to Internal Cluster communications
only (this adapter is also known as the heartbeat or private network
adapter). Clustering communicates by using Remote Procedure Call (RPC) calls on
IP sockets with User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packets. The process described in
this article:
Removes NetBIOS from the interconnect.
Sets the proper Cluster communication priority
order.
Sets the proper adapter binding order.
Defines the proper network adapter speed and
mode.
Configures TCP/IP correctly.
Disable the Media Sense feature (in Windows 2000
only).
Note The information in this article does not apply to Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 failover clusters. The recommendations for network configuration for the newer versions of Failover Cluster in non-CSV environments are noted at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd197454(WS.10).aspx#BKMK_Account_Infrastructure
(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd197454(WS.10).aspx#BKMK_Account_Infrastructure)
. The scenario where the settings in this article are likely to cause adverse behavior on Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2, is with a CSV environment. Recommendations with CSV is located at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff182358(WS.10).aspx
(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff182358(WS.10).aspx)
.
Recommended configuration for the private adapter in Windows 2000 and Windows 2003
Click Start, point to
Settings, click Control Panel, and then
double-click Network and Dial-up Connections.
On the Advanced menu, click
Advanced Settings.
In the Connections box, make sure that
your bindings are in the following order, and then click OK:
External public network
Internal private network (Heartbeat)
[Remote Access Connections]
Right-click the network connection for your heartbeat
adapter, and then click Properties.
Note You may want to rename this connection for simplicity (for
example, rename it to "Private").
Use one of the following procedures:
If the server is using a quorum type other than Majority Node Set (MNS), click to select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and then click to
clear all other options.
If the server is using a MNS quorum, click to select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and at least one other file-sharing network protocol, and then click to clear all other options.
Note If the server is using a MNS quorum, you must have at least one network that has file-sharing capabilities for the MNS quorum to function. We strongly recommend that you have multiple networks on the cluster that have file sharing enabled to avoid a single point of failure for the quorum resource.
If you have a network adapter that can transmit at multiple
speeds, and the adapter can specify a speed and duplex mode, manually specify a
speed and duplex mode.
With network adapters that can manually
specify a speed and duplex mode, make sure that you hard set them to the same
on all nodes and according to the manufacturers' specifications. For network
adapters that do not support manual settings, follow the card manufacturer's
specifications.
The information that is traveling across the
heartbeat network is small, but latency is critical for communication. If you
have the same the speed and duplex settings, this helps to make sure that you
have reliable communication.
If you are not sure of the supported speed of
your card and connecting devices, or your manufacturer's recommended settings, Microsoft recommends that you set all the
devices on that path of 10 MB/Sec and Half Duplex. This configuration will provide sufficient bandwidth and reliable
communication.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
174812
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/174812/
)
The effects of using Autodetect setting on cluster network interface card
Note: Microsoft does not recommend the use of any type of
fault-tolerant adapter or "Teaming" for the heartbeat. If you require
redundancy for your heartbeat connection, use multiple network adapters set to
Internal Communication Only and define their network priority in the Cluster
configuration. Issues seen with early multi-ported network adapters, verify
that your firmware and driver are at the most current revision if you use this
technology.
Contact your network adapter manufacturer for information
about compatibility on a Server Cluster.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
254101
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/254101/
)
Network adapter teaming and server clustering
Click Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and then
click Properties.
On the General tab, verify that you have
selected a static IP address that is not on the same subnet or network as
another one of the public network adapters. An example of good IP addresses to
use for the private adapters is 10.10.10.10 on node 1 and 10.10.10.11 on node 2
with a subnet mask of 255.0.0.0. If your public network uses the 10.x.x.x network and 255.0.0.0 subnet mask please use an alternate private
network IP and subnet.
For more information about valid IP addressing for a private network, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
142863
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/142863/
)
Valid IP addressing for a private network
Make sure that there is no value set in the Default
Gateway box.
Verify that there are no values defined in the Use
the following DNS server addresses box.
Note If the cluster nodes are also DNS servers, "127.0.0.1" is
displayed in the Use the following DNS server addresses box
(the box will not be blank); this is acceptable.
Click Advanced.
On the DNS tab, verify that there are no
values defined. Make sure that the Register this connection's addresses
in DNS and Use this connection's DNS suffix in DNS
registration check boxes are cleared.
When you close the dialog box, you may receive the
following prompt. If you receive this prompt, click Yes:
This connection has an empty primary WINS address. Do you want to continue?
If you are using a crossover cable for your private
heartbeat interconnect, disable the TCP/IP stack destruction feature of Media
Sense.
Note Do not perform this step on a Windows Server 2003 Cluster.
To have us disable the TCP/IP stack destruction feature of Media
Sense for you, go to the "Fix it for me" section. To disable the TCP/IP stack destruction feature of Media
Sense yourself, go to the "Let me fix it myself" section.
To disable the TCP/IP stack destruction feature of Media
Sense automatically, click the
Fix this problem
link. Click
Run
in the
File Download
dialog box, and follow the steps in this wizard.
Note this wizard may be in English only; however, the automatic fix also works for other language versions of Windows.
Note If you are not on the computer that has the problem, you can save the automatic fix to a flash drive or to a CD, and then you can run it on the computer that has the problem.
Recommended configuration for the private adapter in Windows NT 4.0
Click Start, point to
Settings, click Control Panel, and then
double-click Network.
On the Protocols tab, click TCP/IP
Protocol, and then click Properties.
In the Adapter box, click the private
network adapter.
On the IP Address tab, verify that you
have selected a static IP address that is not on the same subnet or network as
another one of the public network adapters. An example of good IP addresses to
use for the private adapters is 10.10.10.10 on node 1 and 10.10.10.11 on node 2
with a subnet mask of 255.0.0.0.
Make sure that there is no value set in the Default
Gateway box.
On the WINS Address tab, click the
heartbeat adapter in the Adapter box.
Verify that there are no values defined for the WINS server
entries.
When you close the dialog box, you may receive the
following prompt. If you receive this prompt, click Yes:
At least one of the adapter cards has an empty primary WINS address. Do you want to continue?
On the Routing tab, verify that the
Enable IP Forwarding check box is cleared.
Click OK.
If you have a network adapter that can transmit at multiple
speeds and can specify a speed and duplex mode, manually specify a speed and
duplex mode.
With network adapters that can manually specify a speed
and duplex mode, make sure that you hard set them to the same on all nodes and
according to the manufacturer's specifications. For network adapters that do
not support manual settings, follow the card manufacturer's specifications.
The information that is traveling across the heartbeat network is
small, but latency is critical for communication. If you have the same speed
and duplex settings, you can help make sure that you have reliable
communication.
If you do not know the supported speed of your card
and connecting devices, Microsoft recommends you set all devices on that path
to 10 MB/Sec and Half Duplex. This configuration provides sufficient bandwidth and reliable
communication.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
174812
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/174812/
)
The effects of using Autodetect setting on cluster network interface card
Note Microsoft does not recommend that you use any type of
fault-tolerant adapter or "Teaming" for the heartbeat. If you require
redundancy for your heartbeat connection, use multiple network adapters set to
Internal Communication Only and define their network priority in the Cluster
configuration. Issues seen with early multi-ported network adapters, verify
that your firmware and driver are at the most current revision if you use this
technology.
Contact your network adapter manufacturer for information
about compatibility on a Server Cluster.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
254101
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/254101/
)
Network adapter teaming and server clustering
On the Bindings tab, click All
Adapters in the Show Bindings For box.
Click the plus sign (+) next to the
adapter used for the private interconnect.
Click WINS Client (TCP/IP), and then click
Disable.Note No protocols other than TCP/IP should be enabled on the
heartbeat adapter. Verify that all others are disabled (including such items as
Network Monitor).
In the Show Bindings For box, click
All Protocols.
Click the plus sign (+) next to
TCP/IP Protocol.
Make sure that the public network adapter is the first
binding (at the top of the binding list). To do this, click the private network
adapter and use the Move Down button. If you have multiple
public network adapters, make sure the heartbeat adapter is listed last.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
193890
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/193890/
)
Recommend WINS configuration for Microsoft cluster server
Click OK to finish modifying the network
properties and accept the changes.
Reboot the node for the changes to take effect.
Complete the previous steps on all other nodes in the
cluster.
Start Cluster Administrator.
Click the cluster name at the root of Administrator. On the
File menu, click Properties.
On the Network Priority tab, verify that
the private network is listed at the top. If it is not, use the Move
Up button to increase its priority.
Click the private network, and then click
Properties.
Click to select the Enable this network for cluster
use check box.
Click Internal cluster communications only (private
Network).
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
281662
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/281662/
)
Windows 2000 cluster nodes as domain controllers
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