Will restarting the “Cluster Service” on the active cluster node cause any outages

clusterwindows-clusterwindows-server-2003

I have a Windows Server 2003 Enterprise active/passive cluster running SQL Server 2005. The "Cluster Service" service won't start on my passive node, and I'm pretty sure it's what's described in this MS KB article. However, it prescribes restarting the cluster service on the active (aka "only one of the pair that's currently working") node, and I want to know if that will cause an outage on my SQL server.

I'm pretty sure it will just bounce that service and come right back up, but since the service on the passive node fails to start, I'm a little nervous that I'm going to take down the whole cluster by restarting this service on the active node.

Any confirmation that it is/not okay?

Best Answer

This will cause an interuption of service. My best recommendation is to schedule a maintenance window allowing at least 15 minutes and performing this at off hours.

Let me know if you need any help.

Best, Nick