StarQuest Technical Documents

How to Install and Configure SQDR in a Windows Cluster Environment (OBSOLETE)

Last Update: 15 May 20014
Product: StarQuest Data Replicator
Version: 3.42 or later
Article ID: SQV00DR019

This technical document is obsolete - please refer to this one instead:

PL038 SQDR Plus: Setting up a Windows Failover Cluster

The information below is provided for historical purposes. The original version of this document was written in 2009, using a contemporary version of Windows Server, 32-bit SQDR, and using SQL Server for the control database.

Abstract

The StarQuest Data Replicator (SQDR) can be managed as a Windows cluster resource and can provide high availablity during a failover scenario.

Solution

This document explains how to install SQDR and configure the SQDR service as a generic cluster service, as summarized in the following steps.

These instructions assume that each cluster node fulfills the prequisites outlined in the Before you Begin section of the SQDR Quick Start Guide, and has a configured 32-bit SQL Server ODBC System DSN that connects to the local SQL Server cluster.

Step 1: Install and configure SQDR on the primary cluster node.

Step 2: Install and configure SQDR on the failover cluster node(s).

Step 3: Configure the SQDR service as cluster service.

Step 4: Test failover configuration.

Step 1: Install and Configure SQDR on the primary cluster node

Follow the instructions in the SQDR Quick Start Guide to install, configure and license SQDR on the primary cluster node. We recommend that you install the software on the drive that is shared by all of the cluster nodes.

We also recommend that you configure Source and Destination objects using connection strings rather than ODBC data sources so that this configuration information is stored in the control database.

You will only need to license the primary cluster node. SQDR running on the failover cluster nodes will use the same license.

Once you have created a SQDR subscription and verified that data can successfully be replicated, proceed to Step 2.

Step 2: Install and Configure SQDR on the failover cluster node(s)

For each node on which you want SQDR to run, complete the following steps.

1. Using the Windows Cluster Administrator, move all of the cluster groups to the failover cluster node so that the failover node is the active owner.
2. Log on to the now active node as an administrative user.
3. Install SQDR by running the setup.exe program from the SQDR installer image. Choose to install SQDR into the same shared drive directory chosen during the installation on the primary node.
4. At the end of the installation, with the Run Configuration Wizard option enabled, click Finish.
5. In the first pane of the Configuration Wizard, select the SQL Server data source that you configured for the Data Replicator control tables and enter the user ID required to log in to the SQL Server.
   Click Next to proceed.
6. Select the option Use an existing control database and tables and click Next. Select the control database created during the SQDR configuration on the primary cluster node, specify the Table Schema (i.e., database owner), and click OK.
7. For the Service Startup Type, select Manual and the Local System Account to start the service (which can be modified later via Windows Services). Click Finish to save the Data Replicator configuration.

Repeat these steps on each of cluster node.

Step 3: Configure SQDR Service as Cluster Service

1. Using the Windows Cluster Administrator, move all of the cluster groups to the primary cluster node so that the primary node is the active owner.
2. Log on to the now active node as an administrative user.
3. Launch the Windows Cluster Administrator.
4. Right-click the SQL Server Cluster Group and choose New -> Resource.
5. On the New Resource dialog, provide the following information and click Next:
   • Name: SQDR Service
   • Description: <optional>
   • Resource Type: Generic Service
   • Group: <your SQL Server Cluster Group>
6. On the Possible Owners dialog, select all of the nodes on which you want SQDR to be able to run. Click Next.
7. On the Dependencies dialog, add the SQL Server resource to the Resource dependencies list and click Next.
8. For the Generic Service Properties, enter SQDRSVC. Leave the Start parameters field blank.
9. On the Registry Replication dialog, click the Add button and enter the following registry locations, individually:
   • SOFTWARE\StarQuest\SQDRSVC (or SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\StarQuest\SQDRSVC for a 64-bit operating system)
   • SOFTWARE\StarQuest\StarLicense (or SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\StarQuest\StarLicense for a 64-bit operating system)
10. Click Finish to create the resource.

Step 4: Test Failover Configuration

1. On the primary node, launch the Windows Cluster Administrator and move all of the cluster groups to the failover cluster node so that the failover node is the active owner.
2. Log on to the now active node.
3. Launch the Data Replicator Manager and verify that the existing subscriptions/groups are present (and active if using incremental replication support).

Notes:

• It is recommended that the operation of the SQDR service be controlled by the Cluster Adminstrator, instead of from Windows Services.
• The Data Replicator Manager cannot be configured as a cluster resource. When needed, launch it manually on the active cluster node.

Additional Resources

Cluster-Unaware Applications section of the Windows Clustering help topic, available on the Microsoft Developer Network site.