C7000/BL460c G6 - Cluster with just embeded Ethernet and 2 GbE2c switches

[JMMartinez]

We have a C7000 with 2 GbE2c Ethernet Blade Switch modules and 8 blade servers (ProLiant BL460c G6). We are planning to cluster 2 blade servers together(MS Server 2003 32b Cluster). We think that using the 2 Ethernet Controllers from the 2 blades that go to each interconnect switch we should be able to set a cluster with no other components required. The set up would be:
Leaving the Ethernet controllers unteamed, use one eth1 port connect to correponding switch (Bay1) and the other eth2 port set as Heartbeat to the other switch (Bay2), and now the other blade set the same but the other way aroung. Please see pic.

What do you think guys?, any suggestion is welcome.

[HEM_2 · Accepted solution]

Sure that will work fine.

You just need to create a Heartbeat VLAN on both GBE2c's and make sure the hearbeat NIC of both server is in that VLAN. Also, add port 17 and 18 to the heartbeat VLAN and enable them (the Cross-connects) so heartbeat traffic will not have to leave the enclosure.

[JMMartinez]

Thank you very much for the information about ports 17 and 18.

I guess that if one of the Heartbeat ports in any of the blades or a GbE2c fail, the heartbeat link will be broken. Can you confirm this?.

Thank you HEM!!!