Creating a cluster ProxMox VE 6.2-4

[itcry]

Hello. Sorry for my English. I use a translator.
Just started a new job. I got several isolated ProxMox servers. I want to create a cluster of several ready-made servers. Each of the servers runs multiple virtual machines.
1 server - ProxMox VE 6.4-4 - 10 virtual machines
2 server - ProxMox VE 6.2-4. - 15 virtual machines

I have several questions.
1) Can I combine these servers into one cluster
2) When combining into a cluster, will the virtual machines continue to work and not be deleted?
3) In what order is it better to update server data to newer versions

 

[leesteken]

Running old (and unsupported for years) versions is a bad idea.
Running different version in a cluster is a bad idea.
Running a cluster with just two nodes is a bad idea.
Adding a node to a cluster while it already has VMs on it is a bad idea.
I do hope you get the general idea. All of this can be gathered from the documentation but three of those things are also also mistakes on this forum.

Maybe buy a new server and make that the first node of your new PVE 8 cluster?

 

[itcry]

Running old (and unsupported for years) versions is a bad idea.
Running different version in a cluster is a bad idea.
Running a cluster with just two nodes is a bad idea.
Adding a node to a cluster while it already has VMs on it is a bad idea.
I do hope you get the general idea. All of this can be gathered from the documentation but three of those things are also also mistakes on this forum.

Maybe buy a new server and make that the first node of your new PVE 8 cluster?

Thank you very much for the detailed answer!
Yes, I have another empty server in reserve. Tell me, which roadmap will be more correct for me?

I install a new server on version 8. Then I just transfer virtual machines from version 6 to version 8 until one of the old servers is free, after that I delete everything on the old server, install version 8 of proxymox and add the old server to the cluster with the new one?

And after that I can also manually gradually transfer machines from the second old server to the new cluster, after the second server is free - I install version 8 on it and also add it to the cluster?

 

[leesteken]

Yes, I have another empty server in reserve. Tell me, which roadmap will be more correct for me?

I install a new server on version 8. Then I just transfer virtual machines from version 6 to version 8 until one of the old servers is free, after that I delete everything on the old server, install version 8 of proxymox and add the old server to the cluster with the new one?

And after that I can also manually gradually transfer machines from the second old server to the new cluster, after the second server is free - I install version 8 on it and also add it to the cluster?

That sounds reasonable. I hope I can assume that you have regular backups on your VMs on a storage that is reachable by each node. Test each VM by restoring a backup to your new PVE 8.2 and once all are working, wipe the old node and install the PVE 8.2 and add it (still empty) to the cluster. This way, if you run into issues, you still have the current VMs running on your old systems. Note that two nodes can give problems since neither have quorum on their own, so don't run that way for long.

EDIT: Here is a link to the documentation: https://pve.proxmox.com/pve-docs/pve-admin-guide.html#chapter_pvecm

 

[itcry]

That sounds reasonable. I hope I can assume that you have regular backups on your VMs on a storage that is reachable by each node. Test each VM by restoring a backup to your new PVE 8.2 and once all are working, wipe the old node and install the PVE 8.2 and add it (still empty) to the cluster. This way, if you run into issues, you still have the current VMs running on your old systems. Note that two nodes can give problems since neither have quorum on their own, so don't run that way for long.

EDIT: Here is a link to the documentation: https://pve.proxmox.com/pve-docs/pve-admin-guide.html#chapter_pvecm

I have another question.
I am installing ProxMox 8 on a new server (we will call the server number 3). And I am restoring all the virtual machines from my server number 1 (ProxMox VE 6.4-4 - 10 virtual machines) to it.
After that, I am installing ProxMox 8 on my old server number 1 and without virtual machines I am connecting it to the cluster to the already existing new ProxMox 8 server number 3, on which virtual machines are already running. In this case, the virtual machines on server number 3 will not be affected and will work. After server number 3 and server number 1 are in the cluster, I will be able to restore machines from server number 2 to server number 1 from the backup until I transfer all the machines and server number 2 is free.
After that, I can install Proxmox 8 on server number 2 and connect it to the existing cluster from my previous two servers with existing virtual machines without virtual machines?

And tell me. Is the statement true?
When creating a cluster or connecting a server to an existing cluster, virtual machines can only be on the main server, and the connected server must be "empty"?

 

[leesteken]

I am installing ProxMox 8 on a new server (we will call the server number 3). And I am restoring all the virtual machines from my server number 1 (ProxMox VE 6.4-4 - 10 virtual machines) to it.
After that, I am installing ProxMox 8 on my old server number 1 and without virtual machines I am connecting it to the cluster to the already existing new ProxMox 8 server number 3, on which virtual machines are already running. In this case, the virtual machines on server number 3 will not be affected and will work. After server number 3 and server number 1 are in the cluster, I will be able to restore machines from server number 2 to server number 1 from the backup until I transfer all the machines and server number 2 is free.
After that, I can install Proxmox 8 on server number 2 and connect it to the existing cluster from my previous two servers with existing virtual machines without virtual machines?

I think so.

When creating a cluster or connecting a server to an existing cluster, virtual machines can only be on the main server, and the connected server must be "empty"?

There is no main server, all nodes are equal. The cluster (consisting one or more nodes) can have (running) VMs but the new nodes must be newly installed and empty (and don't recycle names and IP addresses).

Disclaimer: I don't run a cluster, so maybe I should stop answering and give other more knowledgable people a change.

 

[itcry]

I think so.

There is no main server, all nodes are equal. The cluster (consisting one or more nodes) can have (running) VMs but the new nodes must be newly installed and empty (and don't recycle names and IP addresses).

Disclaimer: I don't run a cluster, so maybe I should stop answering and give other more knowledgable people a change.

I want to make sure that I can create a cluster from 1 node. Run several virtual machines on it, then connect a clean node to this cluster and be sure that the virtual machines will not be deleted

 

[leesteken]

I want to make sure that I can create a cluster from 1 node. Run several virtual machines on it, then connect a clean node to this cluster and be sure that the virtual machines will not be deleted

That is the normal procedure according to the manual, so I expect that to work like that.

 

[sw-omit]

Indeed.
The cluster always starts from 1 node, and it can have VM's and containers on it, while the new one can not.

The reason for this is as follows:
The settings for what VM's there are, as well as things like storage and other things is all shared "in the cluster"
So if a new node joins, it will have it's old local configuration for what VM's it has removed and overwritten by the one from the cluster (even if said cluster only contains one node).

Also, if you join the cluster from the GUI, it will have some checks built in to check if there are no VM's or other items on the new server that could get "lost" when joining and it will stop you if it finds any. It of course isn't a 100% guarantee, so making sure yourself that things are ready should be done too, but there are checks in place to prevent some common mistakes.

 

[itcry]

Indeed.
The cluster always starts from 1 node, and it can have VM's and containers on it, while the new one can not.

The reason for this is as follows:
The settings for what VM's there are, as well as things like storage and other things is all shared "in the cluster"
So if a new node joins, it will have it's old local configuration for what VM's it has removed and overwritten by the one from the cluster (even if said cluster only contains one node).

Also, if you join the cluster from the GUI, it will have some checks built in to check if there are no VM's or other items on the new server that could get "lost" when joining and it will stop you if it finds any. It of course isn't a 100% guarantee, so making sure yourself that things are ready should be done too, but there are checks in place to prevent some common mistakes.

Thank you! I finally understood everything.