Moving Quorum Drive

Hi,
I have a two node failover cluster with two external disk arrays. I have
these two array for some special testing. I no longer need both of them and
need to do some specific testing with just one array. My problem is that the
array I need to test with has all my SQL data but the other array has the
quorum drive. What is the best method to moving the quorum drive to the
other array?
Also, is it possible to have active/active SQL cluster where both SQL
servers (cluster nodes) are sharing the same SQL data files?
Thank you in advance.
Rodney or one of the other Cluster MVPs will have to anwer the quorum disk
move question.
The Active/Active nomenclature is misleading and obsolete. There is no
sharing of data files between SQL instances within a cluster (or anywhere
else for that matter).
Geoff N. Hiten
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Hi,
> I have a two node failover cluster with two external disk arrays. I have
> these two array for some special testing. I no longer need both of them
> and need to do some specific testing with just one array. My problem is
> that the array I need to test with has all my SQL data but the other array
> has the quorum drive. What is the best method to moving the quorum drive
> to the other array?
> Also, is it possible to have active/active SQL cluster where both SQL
> servers (cluster nodes) are sharing the same SQL data files?
> Thank you in advance.
>
|||can't help your sql question, but hopefully this will help you to move your
quorum drive
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;280353
"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Hi,
> I have a two node failover cluster with two external disk arrays. I have
> these two array for some special testing. I no longer need both of them
> and need to do some specific testing with just one array. My problem is
> that the array I need to test with has all my SQL data but the other array
> has the quorum drive. What is the best method to moving the quorum drive
> to the other array?
> Also, is it possible to have active/active SQL cluster where both SQL
> servers (cluster nodes) are sharing the same SQL data files?
> Thank you in advance.
>
|||So does that mean if you need to manage extremely high availability with
900K+ users using SQL, the only option you have is to get beefier boxes? and
live with the 40 second downtime you will get from the cluster failover?
Please note that most of these users are not humans and they know how to
hammer a box :-)
Thanks.
"Geoff N. Hiten" <sqlcraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
news:eHOrQQxgFHA.3936@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Rodney or one of the other Cluster MVPs will have to anwer the quorum disk
> move question.
> The Active/Active nomenclature is misleading and obsolete. There is no
> sharing of data files between SQL instances within a cluster (or anywhere
> else for that matter).
> Geoff N. Hiten
> Microsoft SQL Server MVP
> "Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
>
|||SQL is a scale up not a scale out technology. SQL 2005 has some new tricks
to give you more high availability options, but you are still looking at
buying larger boxes as you outgrow your existing ones. I wouldn't worry too
much, the new TCP-C benchmark released last month by Microsoft is several
times the average daily transaction volume of Visa and it was run on a
single system. Besides, after a certain scale, the disk subsystem and
license costs far outweigh the host computer costs on almost any system,
regardless of which DMBS you are using.
Geoff N. Hiten
Microsoft SQL Server MVP.
"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:OooBB4ygFHA.3692@.TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> So does that mean if you need to manage extremely high availability with
> 900K+ users using SQL, the only option you have is to get beefier boxes?
> and live with the 40 second downtime you will get from the cluster
> failover? Please note that most of these users are not humans and they
> know how to hammer a box :-)
> Thanks.
> "Geoff N. Hiten" <sqlcraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:eHOrQQxgFHA.3936@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
>
|||"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Hi,
> I have a two node failover cluster with two external disk arrays. I have
> these two array for some special testing. I no longer need both of them
> and need to do some specific testing with just one array. My problem is
> that the array I need to test with has all my SQL data but the other array
> has the quorum drive. What is the best method to moving the quorum drive
> to the other array?
The best method of moving the quorum, in my opinion, is to simply use the
GUI. Using the GUI requires that both arrays be visible to the nodes and
that the physical disk that you want to use be also visible to both nodes.
In cluster admin, right click the cluster name, select the Quorum tab and
use the drop down box to select what drive you want to host the quorum.

> Also, is it possible to have active/active SQL cluster where both SQL
> servers (cluster nodes) are sharing the same SQL data files?
Active/active? No. It isn't possible for two instances to share the same
databases and logs.
|||"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:OooBB4ygFHA.3692@.TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> So does that mean if you need to manage extremely high availability with
> 900K+ users using SQL, the only option you have is to get beefier boxes?
> and live with the 40 second downtime you will get from the cluster
> failover? Please note that most of these users are not humans and they
> know how to hammer a box :-)
You can do both. You can scale up, and you can scale out by using multiple
instances of SQL. However, to scale out, you must be able to break up
databases between the instances. If everyone requires access to the same
database, then you don't have the ability to scale out.
900K+ users? I am only guessing that there are not that many simultaneous
users. How many queries a second are we talking about, just out of
curiosity?
|||Thank you Russ.
I will defo give it a try as soon as I create some space on my DB array. :-)
It sound way to simple. hehe
"Russ Kaufmann" <russ@.nospam.exchangemct.com> wrote in message
news:uyGCMO3gFHA.3448@.TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
> "Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> The best method of moving the quorum, in my opinion, is to simply use the
> GUI. Using the GUI requires that both arrays be visible to the nodes and
> that the physical disk that you want to use be also visible to both nodes.
> In cluster admin, right click the cluster name, select the Quorum tab and
> use the drop down box to select what drive you want to host the quorum.
>
> Active/active? No. It isn't possible for two instances to share the same
> databases and logs.
>
|||Thank you Seth.
"seth" <seth@.work.net> wrote in message
news:e58ddYxgFHA.4000@.TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
> can't help your sql question, but hopefully this will help you to move
> your quorum drive
> http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;280353
>
> "Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:OAPXqwwgFHA.3312@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
>
|||http://www.tpc.org/tpcc/results/tpcc...p?id=105060604
GNH
"Dragon" <baadil_nospam@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:ODmlkZ8gFHA.2560@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Thank you Geof. Would you happen to have a link to the benchmark study?
> "Geoff N. Hiten" <sqlcraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:eMbN%239ygFHA.3936@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
>