Hello there,
Rebooting a failover cluster node that does not currently have any active roles (such as passive or auxiliary nodes) generally has fewer consequences compared to rebooting a node that hosts active roles. However, there are still some important considerations to keep in mind:
Resource Failback: If there are any resources that are set to automatically fail back to the preferred node when it comes back online, the failback might occur when you reboot a passive node. This could impact resource distribution and availability.
Cluster Heartbeating: Rebooting a node affects the cluster's heartbeating and communication. When a node reboots, the cluster might need to recalculate the cluster's quorum and reach a new consensus about the cluster's state.
Cluster Quorum: Rebooting a node can lead to changes in the cluster quorum configuration. Depending on the quorum model being used (e.g., Node Majority, Node and Disk Majority, etc.), a node reboot might cause a shift in the quorum configuration, which could impact the cluster's ability to make decisions about resource ownership and failover.
Failover Potential: While the node you're rebooting might not have any active roles, there is always a potential for resources to fail over to it during the reboot process. This can happen if the cluster determines that the preferred owner is not available.
Resource Availability: If the node you're rebooting is part of a multi-site cluster, the remaining nodes in the other site will need to handle the workload until the node is back online. This might lead to increased resource utilization on those nodes.
Management and Monitoring Impact: During the reboot process, management tools and monitoring systems might temporarily lose connection to the node. This could impact your ability to monitor the node's status or perform administrative tasks.
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Hope this resolves your Query !!
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