How to Administer a Server Cluster Remotely (216964)

SUMMARY

It is possible to partially administer a Windows 2000 server cluster remotely from a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 client using the Windows NT Server, Enterprise Edition, Cluster Administrator tool.
It is possible to remotely administer a Windows 2000 server cluster from a Windows 2000 client. Cluster Administrator is part of the Admin Pack, included with Windows 2000 Server editions. Cluster Administrator can be installed on all Windows 2000 editions.
It is possible to remotely administer a Windows NT 4.0 MSCS cluster using Cluster Administrator on a Windows 2000 client.
It is not possible to remotely administer a Windows 2000 server cluster from Microsoft Windows 95 or Microsoft Windows 98 clients.

MORE INFORMATION

To install Cluster Administrator on a Windows NT 4.0 client, use the CD-ROM labeled "Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition Disk 2." Run the Setup.exe file in the MSCS\Cluster\platform folder. You will need to re-apply any service packs and hotfixes specific to clustering that had been applied on the client system.

To install Cluster Administrator in Windows 2000, install the Admin Pack that is distributed with Windows 2000 Server, Advanced Server, and Datacenter Server. To install the Admin Pack on a Windows 2000-based computer, locate the Adminpak.msi file on your software distribution media, and then run (double-click) it. After the Admin Pack is installed, Cluster Administrator appears on the Start menu under Administrative Tools.

For information about how to grant cluster administrator rights, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

174332 How to Add Additional Cluster Administrators

To review Cluster Administrator limitations in Windows NT 4.0, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

171265 Unable to Uninstall Cluster Administrator Tool

Microsoft does not recommend or support installing Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition Cluster Administrator on a server running Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000 Advanced Server, or Windows 2000 Professional. The Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition Cluster Administrator installer allows you to perform this installation and completes without any errors.
However, because the system files in the Windows NT 4.0 version of Cluster Administrator are not designed to run in Windows 2000, the Cluster Administrator may function erratically or you may receive a general protection fault.