HP Windows Server 2012 Cluster Pre-Planning Guide

1 Introduction
Microsoft Failover Clustering, formerly known as Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS), is the clustering
solution included in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and later server operating systems. Microsoft
Failover Clustering groups individual systems together to improve availability, scalability,
maintainability, and workload management. These benefits improve as the number of cluster nodes
is increased. Over time, Microsoft has improved its clustering solution by increasing the number
of supported cluster nodes.
Figure 1 Maximum Number of Cluster Nodes Supported by Microsoft
This pre-planning guide provides information about preparing to install the Windows Server 2012
and Windows Server 2012 R2 Operating Systems for use with Microsoft Failover Clustering on
HP Storage products.
4 Introduction