SQL Server FCI Part 10 of 13: Validating & Adding Node-03 to the Cluster
Node-03 prepared in Part 9. Now we formally add it to the Windows Failover Cluster as a voting member. Short post — the Add Node wizard does most of the…
Systems Admin
Windows Server, Active Directory, and on-prem infrastructure
SQL Server FCI Part 9 of 13: Adding the Third Node (Node-03) — OS & Storage Prep
Two-node FCI works. Tested it. But the design from Part 1 reserved a third node IP — this part builds it. The work splits into two posts: Part 9 (this…
SQL Server FCI Part 8 of 13: Testing the Failover (Break Things on Purpose)
Eight parts of work get tested in 30 seconds. We create some baseline data on the active node, kill the active node hard, watch the cluster move SQL to the…
SQL Server FCI Part 7 of 13: Adding the Second Node (Node-02) — Real HA Begins
SQL Server is installed on Node-01 only — that’s technically a single point of failure dressed up as a cluster. This part fixes that. We run the same setup.exe on…
SQL Server FCI Part 6 of 13: Installing FCI on Primary Node (Node-01)
The big moment. Five parts of plumbing — networks, SAN, initiators, cluster, validation — have led here. Now we install SQL Server itself, but in a special mode: Failover Cluster…
SQL Server FCI Part 5 of 13: Creating & Validating the Failover Cluster (CNO, Quorum Witness)
Plumbing is in. Storage is connected. Time to merge two standalone servers into a single Windows Failover Cluster — the brain that orchestrates failover for SQL Server (and any other…
SQL Server FCI Part 4 of 13: Configuring iSCSI Initiators (and the Cardinal Rule)
SAN built in Part 3; now we connect the nodes to it. The iSCSI initiator on each node binds to its Storage NIC, discovers the target portal, logs in, and…
SQL Server FCI Part 3 of 13: Configuring the iSCSI Target VM (Build the SAN)
Networks done in Part 2; now we build the SAN. The iSCSI-Target VM gets the iSCSI Target Server role, the iSCSI service gets bound to the storage NIC ONLY, and…
SQL Server FCI Part 2 of 13: Network Configuration & Connectivity Testing
Part 1 covered architecture; this part is the network plumbing. Three subnets, three named adapters per node, every link ping-tested before any cluster bit gets installed. Skip a ping test,…
SQL Server FCI Part 1 of 13: Lab Overview & Architecture (Nodes, Networks, iSCSI SAN)
Welcome to part 1 of a 13-part deep dive into SQL Server Always On Failover Cluster Instance (FCI). Before any wizard screens, before any PowerShell, you need the architecture in…
Enable Entra Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR) with Writeback — All Six Phases
SSPR — Self-Service Password Reset — lets users reset their own password from passwordreset.microsoftonline.com without calling the helpdesk. With writeback enabled, the new password flows back to on-premises AD via…
Disable Entra Directory Sync: PowerShell, the Cut, and the 72-Hour Wait
Sometimes you need to stop the sync entirely. Maybe you’re going fully cloud and decommissioning the on-prem servers. Maybe you’re consolidating tenants. Maybe legacy AD is too rotted to fix…