Using SQL Server Tools with Failover Clustering

You can use Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 failover clustering with a variety of SQL Server tools and features. However, review the following usage considerations.

Full-Text Queries

To use the Microsoft Search service to perform full-text queries with failover clustering, consider the following:

An instance of SQL Server 2000 must run on the same system account on all failover cluster nodes in order for full-text queries to work on failover clusters.
You must change the start-up account for SQL Server 2000 in the failover cluster using SQL Server Enterprise Manager. If you use Control Panel or the Services Application in Microsoft Windows® 2000, you will break the full-text configuration for SQL Server.

SQL Server Enterprise Manager

To use SQL Server Enterprise Manager with failover clustering, consider the following:

You must change the start-up account for SQL Server 2000 in the failover cluster by using SQL Server Enterprise Manager. If you use Control Panel or the Services Application in Microsoft Windows 2000, you could break your server configuration.
When creating or altering databases, you will only be able to view the cluster disks for the local virtual server.
If you are browsing a table through SQL Server Enterprise Manager and lose the connection to SQL Server during a failover, you will see the error message, "Communication Link Failure". You must press ESC and undo the changes to exit out of the SQL Server Enterprise Manager window. You cannot click Run Query, save any changes, or edit the grid.
If you use Enterprise Manager to reset the properties of the SQL Server service account, you will be prompted to restart SQL Server. When SQL Server is running in a failover cluster configuration, this will bring the full text and SQL Agent resources offline, as well as SQL Server. However, when SQL Server is restarted, it will not bring the full text or SQL Agent resources back online. You must start those resources manually using the Windows Cluster Administrator utility.

Service Control Manager

Use the Service Control Manager to start or stop a clustered instance of SQL Server. You cannot pause a clustered instance of SQL Server.

To start a clustered instance of SQL Server using Service Control Manager

Service Manager

To stop a clustered instance of SQL Server using Service Control Manager

Service Manager

SQL Profiler

You can use SQL Profiler with failover clustering. However, if you experience a failover on a server where you are running a SQL Profiler trace, you must restart the trace when the server is back online to continue tracing.

SQL Query Analyzer

You can use SQL Query Analyzer with failover clustering. However, if you experience a failover on a server where you are executing a query, you must restart the query when the server is back online to continue execution.

SQL Mail

To use SQL Mail with failover clustering, consider the following:

An instance of SQL Server 2000 must run on the same Microsoft Windows NT® 4.0 and Windows 2000 account on all failover cluster nodes in order for SQL Mail to work on failover clusters.
Each failover cluster node must have a MAPI profile with an identical name and settings. For more information, see Configuring Mail Profiles.