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Remote Control of a Cluster Node

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[Remote Control is supported only on Windows Server 2003.]

In a Network Load Balancing (NLB) cluster, each node has a remote control setting that determines whether or not it responds to remote operations.

  • If remote control is on, or enabled, the node responds to queries, changes settings, and otherwise participates in remote operations
  • If remote control is off, or disabled, the node will only participate in local operations.

The remote control setting has very significant security implications. For the details of these implications, see the NLB online help.

The NLB provider exposes the remote control setting through the RemoteControlEnabled property of the MicrosoftNLB_NodeSetting class. The intent of this property is to allow developers to design custom interfaces that give users the ability to turn remote control on and off.

There is no reason for developers to use the RemoteControlEnabled property for any other purpose. You can perform all configuration and administration tasks through the provider using local operations.

In a NLB cluster, the remote control setting on any node represents a security decision on the part of the user. Changing the setting even briefly without the user's informed consent contravenes the user's security policies and may compromise the network.