Appendix A - Cluster.exe Commands

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You can use Cluster.exe to administer clusters from the Windows NT command prompt. You can also call Cluster.exe from command scripts to automate many cluster administration tasks.

You can use Cluster.exe to administer clusters from either node of a cluster, from nodes of other MSCS clusters, or from other computers running Service Pack 3 with version 4.0 of either Windows NT Workstation or Windows NT Server. Cluster.exe is installed on all cluster nodes, and when you install only Cluster Administrator.

Cluster.exe supports the following basic commands:

  • Cluster

  • Cluster Node

  • Cluster Group

  • Cluster Resource

  • Cluster ResourceType 

The function of these commands and their syntax is explained in the following sections. Table B.9 lists the command abbreviations that Cluster.exe supports.

Notes You must use quotation marks around all names that contain spaces. For examples, see the Cluster.exe commands in the following sections.

When setting properties to True or False, specify 1 for true and 0 for false.

Cluster

The basic Cluster syntax is:

CLUSTER [cluster name] /option

The cluster name is optional. If you do not specify a cluster name, Cluster.exe attempts to connect to the cluster running on the node on which you are running Cluster.exe. Table B.1 describes the available Cluster options.

Table B.1 Cluster command options 

Option

Use to…

/Rename:cluster name

Rename a cluster

/Version

Display the MSCS version number

/QuorumResource:resource name [/Path:path] [/Maxlogzie:size]

Change the name of the quorum resource or the location, or size of the quorum log

/List:[domain name]

Display a list of clusters in the domain to which the computer belongs, or a specified domain

/? or /Help

Display Cluster syntax.

For example, to rename a cluster called OpsClust to OpsClust1, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster opsclust /rename:opsclust1

Cluster Node

The basic Cluster Node syntax is:

CLUSTER [cluster name] NODE [node name] /option

The cluster name is optional here. However, the node name is optional only for the /Status command. If no node name and no options are specified, the command defaults to /Status. Table B.2 describes the available Cluster Node options.

Table B.2 Cluster Node command options 

Option

Use to…

/Status

Display the cluster node status (either Up, Down, or Paused)

/Pause

Pause a node

/Resume

Resume a paused node

/Evict

Evict a node from a cluster

/Properties [propname=propvalue]

Display the node properties. Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific node properties.

/PrivProperties [propname=propvalue]

Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific private node properties.

/? Or /Help

Display Cluster Node syntax.

For example, to display the status of a node named OpsNode1, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster node opsnode1 /status

Cluster Node Common Property Names

By default, there is only one Cluster Node property supported by the cluster software: You can change the node description.

Cluster Node Private Property Name

There are no private properties on cluster nodes by default. However, software vendors can add private node properties to extend functionality within MSCS.

Cluster Group

The basic Cluster Group syntax is:

CLUSTER [cluster name] GROUP [group name] /option

The cluster name is optional here. However, the group name is optional only for the /Status command. If you do not specify a group name when using the /Status command, Cluster.exe displays the status for all groups. Table B.3 describes the available Cluster Group options. If no group name and no option are specified, the command defaults to the /Status option.

Table B.3 Cluster Group command options 

Option

Use to…

[group name] /Status

Display the status of a group (either Online, Offline, or Partially Online)

/Status [/Node:node name]

Display all the groups that are online on a particular node.

/Create

Create a new group

/Delete

Delete a group

/Rename:new group name

Rename a group

/MoveTo [:node name] [/Wait[:timeout in seconds]]

Move a group to another node

/Online [:node name] [/Wait[:timeout in seconds]]

Bring a group online

/Offline [:node name] [/Wait[:timeout in seconds]]

Take a group offline

/Properties [propname=propvalue]

Display a group's properties. Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific group properties.

/PrivProperties [propname=propvalue]

Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific private group properties.

/ListOwners

Display a list of preferred owners

/SetOwners:node list

Specify preferred owner

/Rename:new group name

Rename a group

/? Or /Help

Display Cluster Group syntax

For example, to move a group called Disk Group 1 on the OpsClus1 cluster from OpsNode1 to OpsNode2, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster opsclust group "disk group 1" /moveto:opsnode2

Note With /MoveTo, /Online, and /Offline, /Wait:timeout in seconds specifies how long Cluster.exe would wait before canceling the command if the command does not complete successfully. By default, Cluster.exe waits indefinitely or until the group state changes.

Cluster Group Common Property Names

Table B.4 describes the various common group property names, their uses, and valid settings.

Table B.4 Cluster Group Common Property Names 

Common Property Names

Use

Description

Describes a group

PersistentState

Describes the last known persistent state of a group (True equals online; False equals offline)

FailoverThreshold

Specifies the number of times the Cluster Service attempts to fail over a group before it concludes that the group cannot be brought online anywhere in the cluster

FailoverPeriod

Specifies the interval (in hours) over which the Cluster Service attempts to fail over a group

AutoFailbackType

Set to ClusterGroupPreventFailback (0) to prevent failback. Set to ClusterGroupAllowFailback (1) to allow failback.

FailbackWindowStart

Specifies the start time (on a 24-clock) for failback of a group to its preferred node.
Values for the FailbackWindowStart property must be between 0 (midnight) and 23 (11:00 p.m.) in local time for the cluster.

FailbackWindowEnd

Specifies the end time (on a 24-hour clock) for failback of a group to its preferred node.
See FailbackWindowStart for valid values.

Note You can set both FailbackWindowStart and FailbackWindowEnd to -1 for immediate failback.

Cluster Group Private Property Name

There are no private properties on the default cluster groups, although software vendors can add private group properties to extend functionality within MSCS.

Cluster Resource

The basic Cluster Resource syntax is:

CLUSTER [cluster name] RESOURCE [resource name] /option

The cluster name is optional here. However, the resource name is optional only for the /Status command. Table B.5 describes the available Cluster Resource options.

Table B.5 Cluster Resource command options 

Option

Use to…

/Status

Display the status of a resource (either Online, Offline, or Failed)

/Create /Group:group name /Type:res-type [/Separate]

Create a new resource in a specified group. Use /Separate to specify that the resource should run in a separate Resource Monitor.

/Delete

Delete a resource.

/Rename:new resource name

Rename a resource.

/AddOwner:node name

Add a node name to the list of possible owners.

/RemoveOwner:node name

Remove a node name from the list of possible owners.

/ListOwners

Display a list of possible owners.

/MoveTo:group

Move the resource to a different group.

/Properties [propname=propvalue]

Display the resource properties. Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific resource properties.

/PrivProperties [propname=propvalue]

Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific private resource properties.

/Fail

Initiate resource failure.

/Online [/Wait[:timeout in seconds]]

Bring the resource online.

/Offline [/Wait[:timeout in seconds]]

Take the resource offline.

/ListDependencies

List the dependencies for a resource.

/AddDependency:resource

Add a dependency for a resource.

/RemoveDependency:resource

Remove a dependency for a resource.

/? Or /Help

Display Cluster Resource syntax

For example, to create a Print Spooler resource in the Ops Print Spoolers group, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster resource /create /group:"Ops Print Spoolers" /Type:"print spooler"

Note With /Online and /Offline, /Wait:timeout in milliseconds specifies how long Cluster.exe would wait before canceling the command if the command does not complete successfully. By default, Cluster.exe waits indefinitely or until the resource state changes.

Cluster Resource Common Property Names

Table B.6 describes the various common resource property names, their use, and valid settings.

Table B.6 Cluster Resource Common Property Names 

Common Property Names

Use to...

Description

Change the text that describes a resource.

DebugPrefix

Specify the appropriate debugger for the resource. For more information, see the Microsoft Platform SDK.

SeparateMonitor

Indicates whether or not a resource shares a Resource Monitor. Valid values are True and False.

PersistentState

Describes the last known persistent state of a resource. Because a resource cannot be online if its group is not online, it makes no sense to save the resource's PersistentState property unless the resource is offline.

LooksAlivePollInterval

Recommended interval in milliseconds that the Cluster Service should poll a resource to determine if it appears operational. If a resource does not have a value for the LooksAlivePollInterval property, a default value is taken from the LooksAlivePollInterval property for the resource type.

IsAlivePollInterval

Interval (in milliseconds) that the Cluster Service polls a resource to determine if it is operational. If a value is not specified, a default value is taken from the IsAlivePollInterval property for the specific resource type. IsAlivePollInterval cannot be zero.

RestartAction

Describes the action to perform if the resource fails. The choices are:
ClusterResourceDontRestart (0): Do not restart following a failure.
ClusterResourceRestartNoNotify (1): If the resource exceeds its restart threshold within its restart period, MSCS does not attempt to fail over the group to another node.
ClusterResourceRestartNotify (2): If the resource exceeds its restart threshold within its restart period, MSCS attempts to fail the group over to another node.
If you do not enter a value, the default allows the resource to affect the group, which can cause the group to fail over to another system.

RestartThreshold

Specifies how many times MSCS will attempt to restart the resource in the RestartPeriod before failing over the group.

RestartPeriod

Specifies the amount of time allowed for the restart attempts to reach the RestartThreshold before MSCS fails over the group.

PendingTimeout

The amount of time that a Pending Online or Pending Offline resource has to resolve its status before MSCS puts the resource in Offline or Failed status
If the PendingTimeout property is not specified, the default value is 3 minutes.

Cluster Resource Private Property Name

Some resources store private properties. For example, to see the disk signature for the Disk L: resource, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster resource "disk l:" /priv

Cluster ResourceType

The basic Cluster ResourceType syntax is:

CLUSTER [cluster name] RESOURCETYPE [resource type display name] /option

The cluster name is optional here. However, the resource type name is optional only for the /List command. Table B.7 describes the available Cluster ResourceType options. Default for ResourceType is /List if no option and no resource type is specified.

Table B.7 Cluster ResourceType command options 

Option

Use to…

/List

List the available installed resource types

/Create /DllName:dllname /Type:type name /Isalive:interval /LooksAlive:internal

Create a resource type.

/Delete [/Type]

Delete a resource type. If the resource DLL cannot be accessed by the Cluster Service, specify the resource type name with the /Type option instead of specifying the resource type display name

/Properties [propname=propvalue]

Display the resource type properties. Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific resource type properties.

/PrivProperties [propname=propvalue]

Use propname=propvalue to set the value of specific private resource type properties.

/? Or /Help

Display Cluster ResourceType syntax.

For example, to display the properties of the Generic Application resource type on the OpsClust1 cluster, type the following at the Windows NT command prompt:

cluster opsclust1 resourcetype "generic application" /properties

Cluster ResourceType Common Property Names

Table B.8 describes the various common ResourceType property names, their use, and valid settings.

Table B.8 Cluster ResourceType Common Property Names 

Common Property Names

Use to...

Name

Change a resource type display name.

Description

Change the text that describes a resource type.

DllName

Specify the name of the dynamic-link library (DLL) for a specific resource type.

DebugPrefix

Specify the appropriate debugger for the resource type. For more information, see the Microsoft Platform SDK.

AdminExtensions

Describe one or more class identifiers (CLSID) for Cluster Administrator extensions.

LooksAlivePollInterval

Specify the interval (in milliseconds) that the Cluster Service polls resources of a particular resource type to determine if the resources appear operational.

IsAlivePollInterval

Specify the interval (in milliseconds) that the Cluster Service polls resources of a particular resource type to determine if the resources are operational.

Cluster ResourceType Private Property Name

There are no private properties on the default cluster resource types, although software vendors may add private resource type properties on their resource types to extend functionality within MSCS.

Cluster.exe Abbreviations

Table B.9 lists the option abbreviations supported by Cluster.exe.

Table B.9 Cluster command abbreviations 

Option

Supported Abbreviations

AddDependency

AddDep

DllName

Dll

ListDependencies

ListDep

MoveTo

Move

Online

On

Offline

Off

PrivProperties

Priv

Properties

Prop or Props

QuorumResource

Quorum

RemoveDependency

RemoveDep

Rename

Ren

Resource

Res

ResourceType

ResType

Status

Stat

Version

Ver

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