Anyone else using QDevice for 2-node clusters? Here’s my setup and thoughts

[Fafa24]

I’m running a 2-node Proxmox VE cluster and wanted to avoid using pvecm expected 1 to maintain quorum if one node fails.


Since adding a third Proxmox node isn’t realistic in my homelab setup, I went with a QDevice instead. I deployed it on a Debian 12 VM hosted on an ESXi box (separate hardware). The setup worked well, and it resolved the quorum issue cleanly, even with HA enabled.


The QDevice doesn’t appear in the GUI, but the pvecm status shows the correct vote count. One note: I initially considered Ubuntu, but it lacks the required certificate tools for QDevice setup, so Debian was the better choice.



Curious to hear how others are handling quorum with only two nodes — have you tried alternative setups or run into any unexpected behavior?

 

[SteveITS]

I mean that’s basically what it’s designed for…any even node count.

One gotcha is if you ever add a third you’re supposed to (must?) remove the Qdevice first.

 

[Fafa24]

Thanks, that’s a good clarification!

Yes, I’ve read that for even-numbered clusters (2, 4, etc.), a QDevice helps break ties and avoid quorum loss. In my case, with just 2 nodes, it was a no-brainer.

Good point about removing the QDevice before adding a third Proxmox node. Once you go to an odd number of real nodes, the QDevice isn’t needed anymore and can interfere with quorum calculations.


Appreciate the feedback!

 

[Johannes S]

I'm using a ProxmoxBackupServer as a qdevice for my two-node cluster, works fine