Event ID 118 — NLB Extended Affinity Configuration

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Applies To: Windows Server 2008 R2

In a Network Load Balancing (NLB) cluster, port rules are configured to control how each port's cluster network traffic is handled. One of the settings for port rules is whether extended affinity is enabled. The NLB cluster may fail to converge unless the extended affinity setting on each port rule is identical on all cluster hosts.

Event Details

Product: Windows Operating System
ID: 118
Source: Microsoft-Windows-NLB
Version: 6.1
Symbolic Name: MSG_WARN_INCONSISTENT_CLIENT_STICKINESS_CONFIGURATION
Message: NLB cluster [%2]: The NLB driver has detected an inconsistency in the extended affinity configuration on cluster host %5. The host received an invalid entry from another cluster host, which may be caused by an improper configuration. Use Network Load Balancing Manager to configure NLB, and once the configuration is fixed, run the PowerShell cmdlet 'Set-NlbClusterNode -Reload' followed by 'Start-NlbClusterNode'.

Resolve

Confirm that all NLB hosts have identical extended affinity configurations

Confirm that the extended affinity configurations for all port rules are identical on all Network Load Balancing (NLB) hosts. 

When you are using NLB Manager, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the host that you are configuring, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If you are configuring a cluster or host by running NLB Manager from a computer that is not part of the cluster, you do not have to be a member of the Administrators group on that computer.

Confirm all NLB hosts have identical extended affinity configurations

To confirm that all NLB hosts have identical extended affinity configurations:

  1. On each NLB host, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Network Load Balancing Manager. You can also open NLB Manager by typing Nlbmgr at a command prompt.
  2. If NLB Manager does not already list the cluster, connect to the cluster.
  3. Right-click the cluster, and then click ClusterProperties.
  4. Click the Port Rules tab, and review the port rules to verify that the settings for extended affinity are identical with the rules on the other NLB hosts. If there are extended affinity port rule settings that are not identical, you should reconfigure the port rules to make them identical.

Configure extended affinity on port rules

To configure port rules:

  1. Click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Network Load Balancing Manager. You can also open NLB Manager by typing Nlbmgr at a command prompt.
  2. If NLB Manager does not already list the cluster, connect to the cluster.
  3. Right-click the cluster, and then click ClusterProperties.
  4. Click the Port Rules tab.
  5. In the Defined port rules list, click a rule, and then click Edit. If you need to enable extended affinity for a port rule, click Timeout and provide an appropriate timeout value. When done, click OK.

Verify

When you are using nlb.exe, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the host that you are configuring, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If you are configuring a cluster or host by running nlb.exe from a computer that is not part of the cluster, you do not have to be a member of the Administrators group on that computer.

To verify that all Network Load Balancing (NLB) hosts are in the converged state:

  1. Open an elevated Command Prompt window. Click Start, point to All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.
  2. Type nlb.exe query, which displays the current cluster state and the list of host priorities for the current hosts of the cluster.
  3. Confirm that all hosts display converged as their current state.

 

NLB Extended Affinity Configuration

NLB Cluster