What is the first step in the installation of a Cluster Witness?

The first step in the installation of a Cluster Witness is to qualify the site for Cluster Witness. This step is crucial because it ensures that the environment is suited to support the Cluster Witness operations. Factors such as network connectivity, site availability, and compliance with specific requirements must be assessed before proceeding with the deployment.

Proper qualification ensures that potential issues that could impact the functionality of the Cluster Witness are identified early on. This proactive step supports a smooth installation and configuration process, ultimately leading to a more reliable and resilient architecture.

In contrast, while deploying the Cluster Witness VM, configuring the VPN, and enabling the Cluster Witness are essential steps that follow, they depend on prior qualifications being completed successfully. If the site does not meet the required criteria, these subsequent steps could lead to complications, reduced performance, or functional failures. Therefore, the qualification of the site is foundational to the overall success of the Cluster Witness deployment.