Checklist: Installing a Generic Application resource

Article
10/08/2009

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Checklist: Installing a Generic Application resource

Step	Reference
Review the concepts behind cluster resources.	Server Cluster Resources
Review resource groups and resource dependencies.	Server Cluster groups
Plan common resource settings.	Checklist: Creating a new resource
Install your application on all nodes. Note Before attempting to cluster your application, contact the application vendor for specific installation instructions or recommendations on configuring it optimally on your server cluster.	Generic Application resource type
Note the command line for your application.	The documentation for your application.
Determine the directory in which your application needs to run.	The documentation for your application.
Determine whether your application can display windows on the node on which it runs.	The documentation for your application.
Determine which application registry keys need to be replicated. Information on registry key replication Server clusters provides the ability for Generic Service and Generic Application resource types to specify registry keys below HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE that need be replicated to all nodes in the cluster. Some services or applications might update registry information while they are running by use of Win32 registry functions. The Cluster service provides registry checkpointing for noncluster-aware applications that may use these functions. Registry checkpointing for these resources occurs under the following conditions: When you specify a new registry key for the resource, the specified key is checkpointed. When the resource goes online, the registry keys are updated with the previously checkpointed information. When the resource is brought offline, all the checkpoints associated with this resource are saved. When the resource is online and changes are made to the registry key which is registered with the cluster server for replication, the Cluster service makes sure the updates are written to a checkpoint maintained on the quorum device. If you manually update these registry keys while the application or service is offline, the changes may not be replicated or may be lost. To prevent this from happening, make any manual changes while the service or application resource is online. Cluster aware applications need to make use of cluster registry functions as provided in the cluster API set when working with registry keys under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Cluster. Refer to the Windows Clustering documentation in the Platform Software Development Kit (SDK) for more information on this topic.	The documentation for your application.
Determine whether a dependent network name needs to be substituted for the computer name. Applications can make application program interface (API) calls to determine the name of the computer on which they are running. Making the generic application dependent on a network name resource causes the Use Network Name check box in Cluster Administrator to be selected. In such a case, the network name is returned instead of the computer name when the application makes the API call. This enables applications that are not cluster aware to continue to appear to be running on the same computer even after they move to a different cluster node.	The documentation for your application. For more information on API calls for server clusters, see the Microsoft Platform Software Development Kit (SDK).
Determine whether any application-specific registry keys need to be replicated on all cluster nodes. As described previously, this pertains to applications that are not cluster-aware. An application can store data in the registry. If the application is moved but the registry data is not moved with it, the application's state is lost. If the cluster administrator specifies the root of the registry key, it enables the Cluster service to "watch" that key. The Cluster service captures the data in the key and any changes that occur. When the generic application resource is moved, the Cluster service moves the registry data to the new resource host and then brings the generic application resource online.	The documentation for your application.
Use the New Resource Wizard to create the resource.	Create a new resource