Clustering Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V Hosts - Part 2/4: Failover Clustering Setup

This step-by-step walkthrough runs through configuring Hyper-V R2 hosts with iSCSI shared storage and using Failover Cluster Manager with CSVs (Clustered Shared Volumes.)

Here we are using Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise hosts, with HP LeftHand/P4000 iSCSI Storage.

The guide is split into 4 parts:

Part 1: iSCSI Setup

Part 2: Failover Clustering Setup

Part 3: Cluster Shared Volume

Part 4: Installing Microsoft Hyper-V

Part 2: Failover Clustering Setup

On each host, enable and install the Failover Clustering feature from Server Manager > Features

Note: For the next bit, need to be logged in with a domain user account because Failover Cluster Manager needs to access AD services for all servers in the cluster.

Administrative Tools > Failover Cluster Manager

Click on ‘Validate a Configuration…’

The first thing you should do is validate the configuration (configuration must be validated for Microsoft support)

Click on ‘Create a Cluster…’

Select Servers - add in all the Hyper-V hosts that will be in the cluster:

Give the Cluster Name and Cluster IP Address:

Then Confirm, click Next >, and then Finish!

Checking in the Failover Cluster Manager we see the two nodes, and - also - Failover Cluster Manager has automatically configured the shared storage with the smallest disk as the Quorum: 

Note: If the Quorum is not automatically picked out, then right-click on the cluster object > More Actions… > Configure Cluster Quorum Settings… and chose ‘Node and Disk Majority’ and select your Quorum disk!