Active/Active cluster

I just started at a new company and am looking at their active/active cluster
and immediatly saw that the CPU usage between the machines is very different.
When I asked why, they said the DB1 is on node 1 and DB2 is on node 2.
Duh.
What am I missing? I thought an active/active cluster would have the same
databases on each and the usage between the servers would be roughly similar.
Windows Server 2003, SQL Server 2000.
So where is the fault tollerence then? If I lose Server A, then without
access to Server A's databases how can Server B pick up the load?
"Edwin vMierlo" wrote:

> I mean :
> You can have NOT more than one server accessing the same disk
> "Edwin vMierlo" <EdwinvMierlo@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:ebStYocdHHA.4516@.TK2MSFTNGP04.phx.gbl...
> same
> each
> the
> as
> its
>
>
|||> "JayKon" <JayKon@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:1C79A996-B8AF-49CD-AE78-05F5AFC3F473@.microsoft.com...
> the group/instance will move over to Server B, and your database will be
> online and accessible.
>
OK, to see this for myself when I get in, I should see the same drives setup
on the two machines. However, I will only be able to access drives from the
active server?
|||Correct. The drives are mounted and acccessable from a single node at a
time. The cluster service arbitrates ownership of resources to prevent
multiple nodes from controlling the same resource at the same time. The
node that "owns" the quorum disk is the tie-breaker in all decisions. The
cluster service also monitors the running SQL instances and determines when
to fail them to another node. Clustering uses resource groups and
dependencies to ensure that all the resources required for a particular SQL
instance are always on the same node.
And Edwin is 100% correct in that "Active\Active" is an outdated term that
does not apply to current technologies and is highly misleading.
Geoff N. Hiten
Senior Database Administrator
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
"JayKon" <JayKon@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:C14DF48D-AE91-4AEC-A828-A1D0F1ADD0E9@.microsoft.com...
> OK, to see this for myself when I get in, I should see the same drives
> setup
> on the two machines. However, I will only be able to access drives from
> the
> active server?
>
|||Lastly SQL Clusters are Highly Available and should never be considered
Fault Tolerant.
Highly Available is when I come anytime my wife calls me.
Fault Tolerant = Marriage.
You don't want to be married to you SQL Cluster You do want it around
whenever you call it though.
Cheers,
Rodney R. Fournier
MVP - Windows Server - Clustering
http://www.nw-america.com - Clustering Website
http://msmvps.com/clustering - Blog
http://www.clusterhelp.com - Cluster Training
ClusterHelp.com is a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner
"Geoff N. Hiten" <SQLCraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
news:e1N98lfdHHA.4696@.TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> Correct. The drives are mounted and acccessable from a single node at a
> time. The cluster service arbitrates ownership of resources to prevent
> multiple nodes from controlling the same resource at the same time. The
> node that "owns" the quorum disk is the tie-breaker in all decisions. The
> cluster service also monitors the running SQL instances and determines
> when to fail them to another node. Clustering uses resource groups and
> dependencies to ensure that all the resources required for a particular
> SQL instance are always on the same node.
> And Edwin is 100% correct in that "Active\Active" is an outdated term that
> does not apply to current technologies and is highly misleading.
> --
> Geoff N. Hiten
> Senior Database Administrator
> Microsoft SQL Server MVP
>
>
> "JayKon" <JayKon@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:C14DF48D-AE91-4AEC-A828-A1D0F1ADD0E9@.microsoft.com...
>
|||Nicely put, Rodney.
Geoff N. Hiten
Senior Database Administrator
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
"Rodney R. Fournier [MVP]" <rod@.die.spam.die.nw-america.com> wrote in
message news:O2HbL2fdHHA.4308@.TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> Lastly SQL Clusters are Highly Available and should never be considered
> Fault Tolerant.
> Highly Available is when I come anytime my wife calls me.
> Fault Tolerant = Marriage.
> You don't want to be married to you SQL Cluster You do want it around
> whenever you call it though.
> Cheers,
> Rodney R. Fournier
> MVP - Windows Server - Clustering
> http://www.nw-america.com - Clustering Website
> http://msmvps.com/clustering - Blog
> http://www.clusterhelp.com - Cluster Training
> ClusterHelp.com is a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner
>
> "Geoff N. Hiten" <SQLCraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:e1N98lfdHHA.4696@.TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
>
|||> Highly Available is when I come anytime my wife calls me.
That is possible because there are two or more Rodney's running around. When
one is naughty and not available, another is available to answer the call.
Linchi
"Rodney R. Fournier [MVP]" wrote:

> Lastly SQL Clusters are Highly Available and should never be considered
> Fault Tolerant.
> Highly Available is when I come anytime my wife calls me.
> Fault Tolerant = Marriage.
> You don't want to be married to you SQL Cluster You do want it around
> whenever you call it though.
> Cheers,
> Rodney R. Fournier
> MVP - Windows Server - Clustering
> http://www.nw-america.com - Clustering Website
> http://msmvps.com/clustering - Blog
> http://www.clusterhelp.com - Cluster Training
> ClusterHelp.com is a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner
>
> "Geoff N. Hiten" <SQLCraftsman@.gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:e1N98lfdHHA.4696@.TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
>
>
|||I wish, but I know she does not wish that!!!
Cheers,
Rodney R. Fournier
MVP - Windows Server - Clustering
http://www.nw-america.com - Clustering Website
http://msmvps.com/clustering - Blog
http://www.clusterhelp.com - Cluster Training
ClusterHelp.com is a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner
"Linchi Shea" <LinchiShea@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:94AA9827-F878-432D-BAC6-D1A3ECBE7F23@.microsoft.com...[vbcol=seagreen]
> That is possible because there are two or more Rodney's running around.
> When
> one is naughty and not available, another is available to answer the call.
> Linchi
> "Rodney R. Fournier [MVP]" wrote: