Compaq Parallel Database Cluster Model PDC/O1000 for Oracle8i and Windows 2000 Administrator Guide

4-18 Compaq Parallel Database Cluster Model PDC/O1000 for Oracle8i and Windows 2000 Administrator Guide
Compaq Confidential – Need to Know Required
Writer: John Blackburn Project: Compaq Parallel Database Cluster Model PDC/O1000 for Oracle8i and Windows 2000 Administrator Guide
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Part Number: 225083-002 File Name: e-ch4 Cluster Planning.doc Last Saved On: 6/11/01 11:20 AM
Use Disk Management to define one extended partition per RAID logical
drive. Also using Disk Management, divide the extended partitions into logical
partitions, each having its own drive letter. (Windows 2000 Advanced Server
logical partitions are called “logical drives” in the Oracle documentation.)
IMPORTANT: To performing partitioning, all required drivers must already be installed for
each server. For information about drivers, refer to the Compaq Parallel Database Cluster
Model PDC/O1000 Certification Matrix for Windows 2000.
Disk Drive Planning
Nonshared Disk Drives
Nonshared disk drives, or local storage, operate the same way in a cluster as
they do in a single-server environment. These drives can be in the server drive
bays or in an external storage enclosure. As long as they are not accessible by
multiple servers, they are considered nonshared.
Treat nonshared drives in a clustered environment as you would in a
non-clustered environment. In most cases, some form of RAID is used to
protect the drives and aid in restoration of a failed drive. Since the
Oracle Parallel Server application files are stored on these drives, it is
recommended that you use hardware RAID.
Hardware RAID is the recommended solution for RAID configuration because
of its superior performance. For the PDC/O1000, hardware RAID for
nonshared drives can be implemented with a Compaq SMART-2 controller or
by using dedicated RA4000/RA4100 Arrays for nonshared storage.
Shared Disk Drives
Shared disk drives are contained in the RA4000/RA4100 Arrays and are
accessible to each node in the PDC/O1000.
If a logical drive is configured with a RAID level that does not support fault
tolerance (for example, RAID 0), then the failure of the shared disk drives in
that logical drive will disrupt service to all Oracle databases that are dependent
on that disk drive. See “Selecting the Appropriate RAID Levels” earlier in this
chapter.
As with other types of failures, Compaq Insight Manager monitors the status
of shared disk drives and will mark a failed drive as “Failed.”