Maximum number of supported nodes in a cluster (288778)

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The server clusters feature of Windows Clustering supports a certain maximum number of servers in a cluster. Servers in a cluster are also called nodes. The maximum number of nodes varies depending on the version of the operating system. Microsoft does not recommend that you run a cluster with mixed operating system versions on the nodes. For example, Microsoft does not recommend that you run a cluster with one node running Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and the other node running Microsoft Windows Server 2003. This configuration should only occur during a rolling upgrade.

Microsoft only supports mixed-mode clusters that are one operating system version apart. For example, you can run a Windows NT 4.0 node and a Windows 2000 node in the same cluster, or you can run a Windows 2000 node and a Windows Server 2003 node in the same cluster. Microsoft does not support running a Windows NT 4.0 node and a Windows Server 2003 node in the same cluster.

The following table outlines the maximum number of nodes that are supported in a cluster and the required shared disk configuration.

Operating System	Number of nodes	Storage
Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition Windows 2000 Advanced Server Windows 2000 Datacenter Server Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition Windows Server 2003, Enterprise x64 Edition Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition Windows Server 2003, Datacenter x64 Edition	1-2	SCSI
Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition Windows 2000 Advanced Server	1-2	Fibre Channel
Windows 2000 Datacenter Server	1-4	Fibre Channel
Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition Windows Server 2003, Enterprise x64 Edition Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition for Itanium-based Systems Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition Windows Server 2003, Datacenter x64 Edition Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition for Itanium-based Systems	1-8	Fibre Channel or iSCSI

If you are running a mixed-mode cluster, the maximum number of supported nodes is that of the most restrictive node. For example, if you have a three-node Windows Server 2003 cluster (whose maximum number of nodes is eight), and you add a single Windows 2000 Datacenter Server node, the maximum number of nodes is reduced to four.