Nutanix Certified Associate Practice Exam

What is the minimum number of nodes required for a replication factor of 2 in a Nutanix cluster?

1. 2 nodes

2. 4 nodes

3. 5 nodes

4. 3 nodes

The correct answer is: 3 nodes

In a Nutanix cluster, the replication factor defines how many copies of data are maintained across the nodes in the cluster for fault tolerance and high availability. A replication factor of 2 means that there will be two copies of each piece of data stored in different nodes. To achieve a replication factor of 2, at least 3 nodes are required in the cluster. This is because, with 2 nodes, when one node goes down, there only remains one copy of the data, which does not satisfy the requirement for redundancy. Therefore, with 3 nodes, when one node fails, the data can still be accessed from the other two nodes, thus satisfying the replication factor of 2. In scenarios with higher replication factors or different configurations, more nodes would be necessary, but for a replication factor of 2, 3 nodes provide the minimum viable configuration to ensure that there are always at least two copies available for data recovery and accessibility. The requirement for at least 3 nodes ensures that even in the event of a failure, the integrity and availability of the data are maintained.