Event Review: Clustering Windows Server 2003 and SQL Server 2000 / 2005 (Session TNT1-150)

Welcome to the material supporting page for this session. The materials on this page have been selected as the best matches to the content covered in the live event session.

Session Outline

Clustering is an important technique for building resilient systems and maintaining throughput. Microsoft provides two key, complementary technologies for implementing low-cost, highly available clusters: Network Load Balancing and Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS). Network Load Balancing is used for distributing incoming IP traffic across a cluster of servers. It is ideal for enabling incremental scalability and outstanding availability for e-commerce Web sites. Microsoft Cluster Service provides failover capability by exploiting redundancy across multiple connected machines. If a server running an application fails, MSCS can arrange for another computer in the cluster to take over its work and resources. SQL Server can take advantage of MSCS to implement a highly available database server. SQL Server can also indirectly make use of NLB in a Web farm environment to spread client requests to different servers. This session describes the purposes and roles of NLB and MSCS, highlighting the way in which they operate, and showing how they can be managed and used to implement a clustered SQL Server database server.

Session Agenda

Review of clustering technologies
The architecture of Microsoft Server Clusters
Administering a Server Cluster
Using a Server Cluster to implement SQL Server failover clustering

Session Media

This session consists of a Windows Media presentation and demonstrations:

	Download the full session Download the full multimedia recording of this session.
	Download all slides and transcripts Download just the slides and transcripts of this session.
	Demo: Using Cluster Administrator Use the Cluster Administrator tool to create a new cluster. Learn the prerequisite hardware and software configuration for nodes that want to participate in the cluster, create the cluster, and verify that it was created successfully. Download
	Demo: Using the Cluster.Exe Tool Use the Cluster.exe command-line tool to add a new node to the cluster, examine the status of the cluster, and take resources online and offline. Download
	Demo: Creating a Clustered File Share Create a file share on the cluster and learn how a client can access the file share. Download
	Demo: Implementing Failover and Failback Set the parameters for a shared resource and group that determines the way in which failure of a node is handled. Download
	Demo: Implementing SQL Server Failover Learn how SQL Server can use clustering to maintain database availability in the event that a node running SQL Server fails. Download

Microsoft Press Books

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Administrator's Companion
Summary: This comprehensive administrator's reference describes operating system features and capabilities and provides easy-to-follow procedures, practical workarounds, and key troubleshooting tactics for on-the-job results with the Windows Server 2003 family.
Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Administrator's Pocket Consultant
Summary: Don't get caught at work without this handy guide to Windows Server 2003. It puts all the answers to questions about system administration at your fingertips.

Third-Party Books

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Unleashed, 2nd Edition
Summary: Get a fresh perspective on planning, designing, implementing, and migrating to a Windows Server 2003 environment. The authors rely on their experience from several large client implementations to compile best practices, installation and migration tips and tricks, performance optimization techniques, configuration tuning, and server management techniques.
The Ultimate Windows Server 2003 System Administrator's Guide
Summary: Windows Server 2003, the successor to Windows 2000 and Windows NT, accommodates the seamless exchange of information through Web services. It delivers the increased flexibility and power needed to administer networks as global entities, but its enhanced management tools and security features present as many challenges as opportunities. This book helps readers negotiate these challenges while taking advantage of the opportunities.
Inside Windows Server 2003
Summary: This book contains comprehensive information on deploying, managing, and troubleshooting systems using both Windows Server 2003 and its predecessor. Each chapter contains a lively feature description followed by extensively illustrated procedures for setting up and managing each service.
Inside Active Directory: A System Administrator's Guide
Summary: This book helps provide a solid understanding of Active Directory fundamentals. It demonstrates how Active Directory can store and access data and how it uses industry standards such as LDAP. Numerous diagrams and tables explain the sometimes complex technologies involved in migrating to Windows 2000 from Windows NT or other platforms.
Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Insider Solutions
Summary: Rather than being a traditional planning, design, and implementation guide, this book is a serious resource for Windows experts who seek tips, tricks, and best practices for implementing and supporting key Windows Server 2003 technologies. Sections include security, management, design, migration, business continuity, performance, and business productivity.

Training and Certification

Administering a Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Database:
Summary: This course provides students with the knowledge and skills required to install, configure, administer, and troubleshoot the client-server database management system of Microsoft SQL Server 2000. Course 2072 is a revision of Course 832, System Administration for Microsoft SQL Server 7.0. The course content is being revised to reflect changes in the product.