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Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS) support on ESX/ESXi

Purpose

This article provides supportability and setup information for Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS) on ESX.

Note: Currently, VMware does not support any other clustering solution for vSphere, except Microsoft Cluster Services. For more information, see the VMware Documentation.

Resolution

To determine which releases of ESX support MSCS, consult the table below. The information is based upon the release notes for each release as well as the published product documentation.

ESX Release	MSCS Supported?	Documentation
3.0	Yes	Setup for Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
3.0.1	Yes	Setup for Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
3.0.2	Yes	Setup for Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
3.0.2 Update 1	Yes	VMware Infrastructure 3 Release Notes Setup for Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
3.5	No	VMware Infrastructure 3 Release Notes
3.5 Update 1, 2, 3, 4, 5	Yes	VMware Infrastructure 3 Release Notes Setup for Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF) Update 1 Release for ESX Server 3.5, ESX Server 3i version 3.5, VirtualCenter 2.5 Update 2 and later for ESX Server 3.5, ESX Server 3i version 3.5, VirtualCenter 2.5
vSphere 4.0	Yes	What's New in VMware vSphere 4.0 Setup for Failover Clustering and Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
vSphere 4.0 Update 1, 2	Yes	Setup for Failover Clustering and Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
vSphere 4.1	Yes	Setup for Failover Clustering and Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)
vSphere 5.0	Yes	Setup for Failover Clustering and Microsoft Cluster Service (PDF)

Notes:

The information in these documents is only as current as the document's Last Modified Date. Check frequently for additions and updates to the release notes.
For information regarding supported 64 and 32bit Windows guests, refer to the documentation in the table above.
Windows 2008 is only supported from vSphere 4.0 due to the persistent SCSI-3 reservation support requirement.
There are separate release notes for each release of ESX Server 3. Consult the VMware Infrastructure 3 documentation page specific to the version you are using:
- ESX 3.0.2 and VirtualCenter 2.0.2 / ESX 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1
- VMware ESX 3.5 and VirtualCenter 2.5 / VMware ESX 3.5 Update 1 and VirtualCenter 2.5 Update 1
When a cluster solution is qualified, it receives a Designed for Microsoft Windows Server 2003/2008 logo and is listed in the Windows Server Catalog under Cluster Solutions.

Additional Information

For related information, see:
- Using VMware Converter to convert Microsoft Cluster (MSCS) nodes to virtual machines (1002661)
- The MSDN blog Guest Failover Clustering with VMware
For information on the support policy for Microsoft software running in non-Microsoft hardware virtualization software, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 897615.
For information on Microsoft server software and supported virtualization environments, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 957006.
For information on Windows Server 2003 cluster support policy, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 309395.
For information on the Microsoft Support Policy for Windows Server 2008 Failover Clusters, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 943984.

Note: The preceding links were correct as of September 23, 2010. If you find a link is broken, provide feedback and a VMware employee will update the link.

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