In this segment of my review of the Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Resource Kit Tools, we will be exploring the Confdisk.exe tool.
The Confdisk.exe -- Disk Configuration Utility -- is a tool that administrators can use to recover failed disks in a cluster. Typically, an administrator would use Confdisk in conjunction with the Cluster Recovery and Cluster Administrator tools due to the nature of cluster troubleshooting.
First, let's review server clusters, or nodes, per Microsoft:
Requirements:
Confdisk must be run on a server that belongs to the cluster.
This tool can be used in Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition and Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition.
Installation:
You can run Confdisk.exe on any system that has the reskit (Windows 2003 Resource Kit Tools) installed.
General use:
The Confdisk tool uses a .sif file, which an administrator needs to create before a cluster fails. The .sif file contains the necessary information to recreate the disk signature on the clusters hard disk. An administrator uses the Confdisk tool to create the sif file by referencing an ASR (Automated System Recovery) diskette. It uses the files on this diskette to populate the .sif file.
Per Microsoft:
To u
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se this utility:
Parameters:
Examples:
Here is a common disk replacement scenario from Microsoft: The Cluster service fails to start and generates an Event ID 1034 in the Event log after you replace a failed hard disk or change drives for the quorum resource.
Cause: If a hard disk is replaced, or the bus is reenumerated, the Cluster service may not find the expected disk signatures and consequently may fail to mount the disk.
Solution: Write down the expected signature from the Description section of the Event ID 1034 error message. Then follow these steps:
The Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Resource Kit Tools are a set of tools to help administrators streamline management tasks, such as troubleshooting operating system issues, managing Active Directory, configuring networking and security features, and automating application deployment. You can download the kit and see a list of tools provided at Microsoft's Web site.
About the author: Tim Fenner (MCSE, MCSA: Messaging, Network+ and A+) is a senior systems administrator who oversees a Microsoft Windows, Exchange and Office environment. He is also an independent consultant who specializes in the design, implementation and management of Windows networks.
