How to set the startup value for a resource on a clustered server

By default, when the Cluster service starts or when failover occurs, the Cluster service attempts to bring all groups and resources online. For management or troubleshooting purposes, you may want to prevent a particular group or resource from starting automatically. You can define the state of a group or resource as either offline or online by setting its "persistent state" value in the cluster registry hive. The default value is "enabled," which automatically starts all resources, while a value of "disabled" keeps a group/resource in an offline state until an administrator can manually bring the resource online.

Another consideration when setting resources persistent state and its online status is the resources that are dependent on that resource. If another resource that is persistent state is set to start that resource, it attempts to start all resources it is dependent on. This can inadvertently start resources.

For Example: You may set IP Address resources persistent state, so that it does not start. However, a Network Name resource that dependent on it and is trying to go online, may start the IP Address resource.

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

To change the startup value from the default of bringing a resource online automatically to having it stay in an offline state, use the following steps:

1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32).
2. Locate the appropriate resource or group:
   • For a resource, locate the following registry key:
     HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Cluster\Resources\<GUID>
   • For a group, locate the following registry key:
     HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Cluster\Groups\<GUID>
3. Modify the registry key to the appropriate startup state:
   Value Name: PersistentState
   Data Type: REG_DWORD
   Data: 0x0 (Disabled) or 0x1 (Enabled)
   In Windows Server 2003 a new value has been added of 0xffffffff (-1), which tells the Cluster service that the resource persistent state is to be interpreted based on the group's persistent state.
   
   

NOTE: its Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) lists each resource. The GUID has 32 alphanumeric values and uses the following format: Under each GUID, look for a Name key that has a value for the appropriate resource or group.

If the Cluster Server service is stopped and you want to prevent a group or resource from coming online, you can load the cluster registry hive and alter the "persistent state" before starting the Cluster Server service.

To load the cluster registry hive:

1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
2. Open the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE hive.
3. Click the root (so that HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE is selected).
4. On the Registry menu, click Load Hive.
5. Browse to the %SystemRoot%\Cluster folder, and then click CLUSDB. When you are prompted for a key name, type cluster.
6. After you make the appropriate changes, click Cluster and then click Unload Hive on the Registry menu. This saves the changes you made to the hive.

NOTE: If you leave the cluster registry hive loaded, the Cluster Server service does not start.