The cluster identity may lack permissions required to update the object

Lucas Peñaloza 671 Reputation points
2025-12-02T20:36:56.19+00:00

Dear;

Hi have the message:

The computer object associated with the cluster network name resource 'Cluster Name'

could not be updated in domain 'xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx' during the

Password change operation.

The text for the associated error code is: The specified network password is not correct.

The cluster identity 'CLPWGIRSQL$' may lack permissions required to update the object.

Please work with your domain administrator to ensure that the cluster identity can update computer objects in the domain.

Please tell me what I need to check

Thank you so much!!!.

Windows for business | Windows Server | Storage high availability | Clustering and high availability
Answer accepted by question author
VPHAN 44,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
2025-12-29T21:01:36.1466667+00:00

Hello Lucas Peñaloza,

I wanted to follow up to see if you successfully completed the upgrade of the final node (PWGIRSQL1) and failing back your resources.

To summarize our last discussion regarding your final step:

The Risk: Update-ClusterFunctionalLevel is irreversible, but it is safe as long as all nodes are online, running the new OS, and you have passed the Test-Cluster validation.

The Strategy: There is no rush. You can leave the cluster in "Mixed Mode" for a few days to verify stability before running the command to lock in the new features.

If your cluster is now fully upgraded and stable, please consider accepting the answer as it helps other people sharing the same question benefit too. Thank you!

VP

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Answer accepted by question author
VPHAN 44,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
2025-12-18T15:55:23.51+00:00

Hi Lucas Peñaloza,

You are definitely correct to be cautious about High Availability (HA). While a Windows Cluster can technically run with one node on a new OS and two on the old OS (Mixed Mode), your approach minimizes risk significantly.

By updating both Secondary nodes (PWGIRSQL2 and PWGIRSQL3) before you ever touch the Primary (PWGIRSQL1), you ensure that when you finally perform the failover:

  1. Stability: You are failing over to a new OS node (PWGIRSQL2) that already has another new OS partner (PWGIRSQL3) ready to sync.
  2. Redundancy: If something goes wrong with PWGIRSQL2 immediately after the upgrade, you have PWGIRSQL3 (also upgraded) as a safety net.

The Approved Execution Order:

  1. Update PWGIRSQL2 (OS + SQL).
    • Result: Node 2 is healthy and syncing again.
  2. Update PWGIRSQL3 (OS + SQL).
    • Result: Node 3 is healthy and syncing again.
    • State: Now you have 2 upgraded nodes waiting in the wings.
  3. Failover the Availability Group from Node 1 to Node 2.
    • Result: Your Production is now running on the New OS.
  4. Update PWGIRSQL1 (The old Primary).

This is the safest, most professional way to execute a 3-node cluster upgrade. Proceed with confidence.

I hope you've found something useful here. If it helps you get more insight into the issue, it's appreciated to accept the answer. Should you have more questions, feel free to leave a message. Have a nice day!

VP

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Answer accepted by question author
VPHAN 44,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
2025-12-15T14:54:40.93+00:00

YES, absolutely. You must always begin your upgrade process with the Secondary Replicas. Since your cluster is now healthy, the safest rolling upgrade workflow is to upgrade the passive nodes first, leaving the active Primary (PWGIRSQL1) untouched until the very end to keep your application online.

Here is the recommended sequence:

Phase 1: Upgrade the Secondary (PWGIRSQL2)

Since PWGIRSQL2 is already a Secondary replica and you just stabilized it, it is the perfect candidate to start with.

  1. Backup: Take a full backup of your databases on the Primary (PWGIRSQL1) just in case.
  2. Suspend Data Movement (Optional but Recommended): In SSMS, you can temporarily suspend data movement for the PWGIRSQL2 replica if the upgrade will take a long time (to prevent the transaction log on the Primary from growing too large while waiting).
  3. Perform the Upgrade: Apply your Operating System updates or SQL Server patches/upgrades on PWGIRSQL2.
  4. Reboot & Validate: Restart PWGIRSQL2. Once it is back online, open SSMS on the Primary and verify that PWGIRSQL2 returns to the Synchronized (or Synchronizing) state. Phase 2: Upgrade the Next Secondary (PWGIRSQL3)

Once Node 2 is green and fully synced, repeat the process for PWGIRSQL3.

Phase 3: The Failover (Switch Roles)

Once both Secondaries (Node 2 and Node 3) are upgraded and healthy:

  1. Change the Availability Mode of PWGIRSQL2 to Synchronous Commit (if it isn't already).
  2. Perform a Manual Failover of the Availability Group from PWGIRSQL1 to PWGIRSQL2.
    • Now PWGIRSQL2 is the Primary and is running the new version.
  3. Verify applications are connecting successfully. Phase 4: Upgrade the Old Primary (PWGIRSQL1)

Now that PWGIRSQL1 is a passive Secondary, you can safely proceed to upgrade it.

VP

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  1. VPHAN 44,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-12-17T22:09:11.5466667+00:00

    Hello Lucas Peñaloza,

    There is no "timer" or hard limit in the Windows Cluster itself. You can keep a node paused for days if you want. The real limit is the Free Disk Space on your Primary Node (PWGIRSQL1).

    When you reboot PWGIRSQL2 for the OS upgrade, it stops communicating with the Primary. Because your Availability Group is active, PWGIRSQL1 cannot truncate or shrink its Transaction Log until it confirms that PWGIRSQL2 has received the data. As your users continue to write to the database, the log file on PWGIRSQL1 will grow continuously to hold those pending records. The Danger Zone: If the disk drive hosting the Transaction Log on Node 1 fills up (0 bytes free), your Production Database will stop working (freeze) immediately.

    Before you start, perform this quick calculation:

    Check Free Space: Look at the drive letter where your SQL Logs reside on PWGIRSQL1 (e.g., L: drive).

    Estimate Growth Rate: Do you know how much log your database generates per hour? (e.g., 1 GB/hour?).

    Calculate the Limit: Free Space / Growth Rate = Maximum Pause Time.

    Example: If you have 100 GB free and your server generates 5 GB of logs per hour, you have 20 hours of safety. If you have 10 GB free and generate 5 GB per hour, you only have 2 hours.

    Recommendations

    Typical Window: An OS In-Place Upgrade + SQL Upgrade usually takes 1 to 2 hours per node. In most healthy environments, the log drive can easily handle 2 hours of growth.

    Safety Valve: If the upgrade goes wrong and PWGIRSQL2 is offline for longer than expected (and the disk on Node 1 is filling up), your emergency move is to Remove the Availability Replica (PWGIRSQL2) from the Availability Group via SSMS on Node 1.

    Effect: This tells Node 1 "Stop waiting for Node 2." The log will clear/truncate, and production is saved.

    Downside: When you finally fix Node 2, you will have to re-seed the database (full sync) from scratch.

    __In short, c__heck the disk space on PWGIRSQL1 now. If you have plenty of space (50GB+ is usually safe for a maintenance window unless you have massive transaction volume), you are safe to proceed with the update.

    VP

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  2. VPHAN 44,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-12-16T03:01:13.88+00:00

    NOOO, you should only Pause & Drain the node ONCE at the very beginning. You should keep the node in the "Paused" (Maintenance Mode) state for the entire duration of both upgrades (OS + SQL).

    In Windows Failover Clustering, the Paused status is persistent. When PWGIRSQL2 reboots after the OS upgrade and rejoins the cluster, it will come back online in the Paused state automatically. It will not start hosting roles or accepting client connections until you explicitly tell it to. If you were to Resume the node after the OS upgrade (Step 1) but before the SQL upgrade (Step 2), you risk the cluster trying to move the SQL role back to this node while it is running a "mixed" configuration (New OS + Old SQL). This could cause compatibility issues or trigger an unnecessary double-failover.

    The Recommended Workflow:

    Pause & Drain PWGIRSQL2.

    Perform OS Upgrade -> Reboot.

    Check: The node comes back up, shows status "Up" but remains "Paused."

    Perform SQL Server Upgrade -> Reboot.

    Resume and Fail Roles Back only after everything is finished.

    This approach treats the entire operation as a single maintenance window, which is the safest way to proceed.

    I hope you've found something useful here. If it helps you get more insight into the issue, it's appreciated to accept the answer. Should you have more questions, feel free to leave a message. Have a nice day!

    VP

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