Deploying Agents to Clustered Computers

Clustered computers can be automatically discovered and managed by MOM 2005. However, a virtual server for a cluster can be managed only if the physical nodes are agent-managed. Install the agent on all the physical nodes of the cluster, and then go to the Windows Server Cluster Computers view and mark the virtual server as managed.

The process of deploying an agent to a physical cluster node is the same as for deploying an agent to any computer. You can find those instructions in Chapter 4, "Discovering Computers and Deploying MOM Agents." For a cluster, you have the following additional tasks:

  • Turn off event log replication (or enable proxying).

  • Start managing the virtual server.

Turn Off Event Log Replication

MOM uses event data to monitor a specific computer. Event log replication, turned on by default in some versions of Windows, interferes with the monitoring of one specific computer. Therefore, when you use a MOM agent to monitor your clustered computers, you must turn off event log replication on each of the computers within the cluster before you install the agent.

Note

    If you cannot turn off event log replication, you can satisfy MOM requirements by enabling agent proxying for each physical node. Use the Security tab of the Properties dialog box for each physical node to enable this setting. Make sure that your global setting will not override your local setting.

You can turn off event log replication by one of the following methods:

  • In the Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003 Cluster Services Management Pack, run the Disable Event Log Replication task.

  • On computers running Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003, run the Cluster.exe command-line tool to disable this feature for the entire cluster. For more information about the Cluster.exe command-line tool, see Help and Support for the operating system.

Disabling replication with the Cluster.exe tool

Before you install the agent, use the Cluster.exe command-line tool to reconfigure the EnableEventLogReplication property:

  • To disable replication of event logs for the entire cluster, use the following syntax:

    cluster /properties EnableEventLogReplication=0 
  • To disable the replication of the event log from a single node of the cluster, use the following syntax:

    cluster name of node /properties EnableEventLogReplication=0 

    Replace the name of the node with the computer name of that node.

When you disable replication at a specific node, replication of events from that node to other nodes is disabled. Other nodes that still have the EnableEventLogReplication property turned on continue to replicate to that node. You must turn off replication for all the computers you want to monitor with a MOM agent.

Install the MOM Agent

Install the MOM agent on the physical nodes within the cluster. For MOM 2005 (without Service Pack 1), before you install an agent on a node, you must configure it as the preferred owner. For detailed information on installation, see Chapter 4, "Discovering Computers and Deploying Agents."

Note

    The virtual server must be online for the discovery process. MOM cannot discover a virtual server that is offline.

After the agent is installed on the physical nodes, these computers will appear in the MOM Operator console and report a state of "Success". The virtual server will appear in the MOM Operator console within several minutes and report a state of "Unknown".

Note

    For MOM 2005, there are three prerequisites for a virtual server to be discovered by MOM: an IP address, a network name, and that the virtual server is configured to run an application. (It doesnt matter what application.)

With MOM 2005 Service Pack 1, only the first two prerequisites apply: an IP address and a network name.

Start Managing the Virtual Server

After you install the agent on the physical cluster nodes, the cluster virtual server is added to the Administration\Computers\Windows Server Cluster Computers node in the MOM Administrator console. Right-click the virtual server, and click Start Managing. The state for these virtual servers in the MOM Operator console should change to "Success".

Note

    It can take several minutes (up to 30) for the virtual server to appear in the Administrator console.