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    Hi,

    I've a query on configuring redundant WSUS server. May be i can explain about the current setup, network connectivity & planning details as it will be easier for you to understand the situation.

    The main Data center is in India and WSUS server will be deployed here.

    The other member servers are located in UK in three different customer location. Each customer location has 2 APPS server and there is no network connectivity between these three sites whereas it will be accessible from the main data center. 

    We cannot use any of the 6 servers for downstream server (because of business policy) & cannot be used either as replica or remote storage server as there is no internet connectivity.

    And what i'm looking for - Is there a way to configure & use a redundant WSUS server if in case of primary goes down. If yes, kindly let me know the ways to acheive it.

    Note - Both primary and secondary servers will be located in main DC.

    Any help or suggestion in this regards would be highly appreciated.

    Thanks,

    Saravana

    Thursday, March 14, 2013 7:47 AM

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    >>We cannot use any of the 6 servers for downstream server (because of business policy) & cannot be used either as replica or remote storage server as there is no internet connectivity.<<

    As i understood,  enterprise policy restricted you to make UK's servers DSS/Replica of WSUS in India location? In this case why you don't want to make standalone USS WSUS installation i each UK location?

    >>And what i'm looking for - Is there a way to configure & use a redundant WSUS server if in case of primary goes down. If yes, kindly let me know the ways to acheive it. <<

    WSUS 3.0 servers can now be configured in a cluster for fault tolerance. Such servers must all point to the same SQL Server database instance, which can also be clustered.

    Also i think NLB cluster is more suitable for you. If the first server fails, the  second one  will automatically elect itself as master.

    You can read more about it:

    http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd939896.aspx

    Maxim Sinel'nikov

    Thursday, March 14, 2013 9:01 AM
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    Hi,

    Thanks for your response Siny.

    Ans for your 1st Query - The servers which are located in UK cannot be used for any purposes except for few applications. I want these 6 servers to be patched without any problems from India.(Even if primary WSUS goes down the secondary server should be able to push patches. As far as i know, this is not possibile in WSUS but just curious to know if anyone has did some tricks to make this happen)

    Reg.ans for 2nd one - We dont want to configure it on a cluster because there will be 5-6 applications installed on the same server (WSUS) and those applications will give problems if its on Cluster.

    Is there any other options?

    --Saravana

    Thursday, March 14, 2013 12:06 PM
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    Ans for your 1st Query - The servers which are located in UK cannot be used for any purposes except for few applications. I want these 6 servers to be patched without any problems from India.(Even if primary WSUS goes down the secondary server should be able to push patches. As far as i know, this is not possibile in WSUS but just curious to know if anyone has did some tricks to make this happen)

    The indicated solution for this objective IS a Network Load Balancing (NLB) cluster, as Siniy has indicated. Please refer to the provided link for requirements and guidance to implement a WSUS NLB environment.

    Reg.ans for 2nd one - We dont want to configure it on a cluster because there will be 5-6 applications installed on the same server (WSUS) and those applications will give problems if its on Cluster.

    Is there any other options?

    The only other option available is to install a REPLICA server on the same site as the primary, and IF the primary fails, reconfigure the clients to get updates from the replica server.

    But having said that, I think its worthwhile to talk about whether you really need this type of redundancy for six servers. In all likelihood these servers are only going to be patched once a month. If the primary server goes down, statistically speaking you'll have at least two weeks, on average, to rebuild that server before the next patch cycle. Even if the server went down on Patch Tuesday -- with proper backups and a functional DR/BC plan -- that server can be back online by the end of the next day.

    Ergo, if you can't do an NLB cluster .... that may not be that bad of a thing. Just build a good plan for what to do *IF* the server fails.

    Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
    SolarWinds Head Geek
    Microsoft MVP - Software Packaging, Deployment & Servicing (2005-2013)
    My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
    http://www.solarwinds.com/gotmicrosoft
    The views expressed on this post are mine and do not necessarily reflect the views of SolarWinds.

    Saturday, May 25, 2013 5:08 PM