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Troubleshoot Configuration Issues with Failover Cluster Storage

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Applies To: Windows Server 2008

If you are having configuration issues with disks in the storage for a failover cluster, you can use Disk Management and the failover cluster validation wizard to help with troubleshooting.

Membership in the local Administrators group, or equivalent, is the minimum required to complete this procedure. Review details about using the appropriate accounts and group memberships at Local and Domain Default Groups (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=83477).

To troubleshoot configuration issues with failover cluster storage

  1. On each node in the cluster, open Disk Management (which is in Server Manager under Storage) and see if the disk is visible from one of the nodes. If so, continue to the next step. If it is not visible from any node, still in Disk Management on a node, right-click any volume, click Properties, and then click the Hardware tab. Click the listed disks or LUNs to see if all expected disks or LUNs appear. If they do not, check cables, multi-path software, and the storage device, and correct any issues that are preventing one or more disks or LUNs from appearing. If this corrects the overall problem, skip the remaining steps.

  2. Review the event log for any events that indicate problems with the disk.

  3. To open the failover cluster snap-in, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Failover Cluster Management. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.

  4. In the Failover Cluster Management snap-in, in the console tree, make sure Failover Cluster Management is selected and then, under Management, click Validate a Configuration.

  5. Follow the instructions in the wizard to specify the cluster you want to test.

  6. On the Testing Options page, select Run only tests I select.

  7. On the Test Selection page, clear the check boxes for Network and System Configuration. This leaves only the tests for Storage and Inventory. You can run all these tests, or you can select only the specific tests that appear relevant to your situation.

Important

If a clustered service or application is using a disk when you start the wizard, the wizard will prompt you about whether to take that clustered service or application offline for the purposes of testing. If you choose to take a clustered service or application offline, it will remain offline until the tests finish.

  1. Follow the instructions in the wizard to run the tests.

  2. On the Summary page, click View Report.

  3. If the preceding steps have not provided enough information to correct the issue, optionally, try running chkdsk on the disk to verify the integrity of the volumes on the disk.

Additional considerations

  • To view the results of the tests after you close the wizard, choose one of the following:

    • Open the folder systemroot\Cluster\Reports (on a clustered server).

    • If the tested servers are now a cluster, in the console tree, right-click the cluster, and then click View Validation Report. This displays the most recent validation report for that cluster.

Additional references