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from the cluster
Practical articles drawn from real Hyper-V cluster measurements: findings we keep encountering, decisions worth getting right the first time, and migration paths that actually work in production.
One incident, two reports: how my AI assistant knocked a node out of my Azure Local cluster, and what the RCA made of it
A live kernel dump froze one node of an Azure Local lab cluster for 52 seconds and the cluster threw it out. How the RCA proved it to the second, and why a manager, an admin and an engineer each need their own version of the same report.
Read article → PatchingSeptember 2026 Patch Tuesday: the RDS/RDP regression and the case for N-1 patching
What the September Cumulative Update fixed, the RDS/RDP regression it caused on Server 2019/2022/2025, how Microsoft responded with a Known Issue Rollback and later an out-of-band fix, and whether N-1 patching is the right default.
Read article → Cluster assessmentHow we Follow Up on the Hyper-V Cluster Assessment
A cluster assessment is not a one-shot PDF. How ClusterTriage reports remediation progress across measurement rounds: a delta report, a remaining-risk document, and a risk trend chart.
Read article → Cluster assessmentHyper-V cluster assessment: 10 issues we keep finding in 2026
After years of engagements, ten findings keep coming back. Live Migration networks, witness gaps, firmware drift, CSV imbalance, with PowerShell diagnostics and remediation per issue.
Read article → StorageSAN vs S2D vs Azure Local: Choosing Hyper-V Storage in 2026
A no-nonsense 2026 comparison of Hyper-V storage: SAN, Storage Spaces Direct and Azure Local, now that Azure Local runs on SAN too. Fit, cost, performance, and migration paths.
Read article → PatchingCluster Aware Updating: Runbook, Audit Trail, and What Nobody Documents
CAU governance for Hyper-V clusters: self-updating vs remote, the 8-section runbook template, audit-trail scripts, and pre/post-update tasks.
Read article → Windows Server 2025Windows Server 2025 Hyper-V: What It Really Adds for Cluster Operators
The four Hyper-V features that materially matter for cluster operators: Dynamic CPU compatibility, GPU-P for production, vTPM 2.0 default, hot-patching, plus the 2012 R2/2016 guest pitfall and a 6-step upgrade strategy.
Read article → StrategyWhat's it gonna be: Classic Hyper-V or Azure Local?
Azure Stack HCI is gone. When a classic Hyper-V failover cluster on shared storage beats Azure Local with Arc, and when it does not. With a poll.
Read article → StorageCSV Ownership Imbalance in Hyper-V Clusters: Causes and Fixes
One node owning every CSV is a silent performance killer. Why ownership drifts after patching or failover, the measured impact (4.5x worse P99 read latency), and how to rebalance safely.
Read article → StorageAligning VMs With Their Storage: Building on Darryl van der Peijl's Script
How ClusterTriage took Darryl van der Peijl's classic align-VMs-with-storage script and grew it into a site-aware, CSV-ownership-first placement balancer for production Hyper-V clusters, with WhatIf safety and before/after visualisation.
Read article → Cluster assessmentFrom Cluster Assessment to Patch Night: The Method at Work
A worked example of the five-step method: measure, rank, fix in order, re-measure, execute. How a multi-site Hyper-V cluster went from twelve High Risk findings to a clean, uneventful patch night.
Read article → Azure LocalAzure Local in 2026: The Flaws Are Documented. Plan Your Exit Before You Enter.
Microsoft documents the problems itself: fragile solution updates, the Arc certificate leash, a disconnected mode that contradicts its own purpose. The four qualifying questions, the Server 2022 rollback myth, and why Veeam is the exit path you design on day one.
Read article → Failover ClusteringSecure Boot certificates and Hyper-V: why your Gen 2 VMs are not updating in 2026
The 2011 Microsoft Secure Boot certificates begin expiring in June 2026. On Windows Server Gen 2 VMs the 2023 update is not automatic and often fails silently with Event ID 1795, opt-in set, certificates absent, every dashboard green. Diagnose, remediate, avoid the boot-media trap.
Read article → Azure LocalAzure Local Migration Readiness Checklist: What's Different in 2026
Leaving VMware or replacing an aging Hyper-V cluster? A practical readiness checklist covering hardware compatibility, RDMA networking, Entra ID, licensing, operational shift, and the gotchas that break projects.
Read article → Time ServiceTime Drift in Hyper-V Clusters: The Silent Killer of Kerberos and CSV
Five minutes of clock skew breaks Kerberos, fifty seconds breaks heartbeats. The w32time hierarchy for Hyper-V hosts, PDC emulator config, Time Sync IS guidance, drift detection and a 7-step remediation playbook.
Read article → QuorumFile Share Witness vs Cloud Witness vs Disk Witness: Which Type Fits Your Cluster?
Three witness types compared in production terms. Decision matrix per topology, five configuration mistakes we keep finding, and a one-line bottom line: a witness in the same fault domain as the cluster is decoration.
Read article → NetworkingLive Migration on the Wrong Network: The Silent Hyper-V Pitfall
The single most common cluster assessment finding. Three independent configuration layers, the PowerShell to verify the actual TCP path during migration, and the remediation we apply on every engagement.
Read article → MigrationVMware to Hyper-V Cluster Migration: A 6-Step Pre-Migration Assessment
After Broadcom, Gartner forecasts 35% of VMware workloads move by 2028. The 6-step pre-migration assessment: capacity, network parity, CSV design, guest readiness, backup/DR, and cutover with rollback criteria.
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ClusterTriage
Measure the environment. Make the reasoning visible
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