# How to make nodes forget about the old/previous cluster?

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/how-to-make-nodes-forget-about-the-old-previous-cluster/306315>\
**Category:** Elasticsearch\
**Created:** [June 3, 2022, 9:47am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/how-to-make-nodes-forget-about-the-old-previous-cluster/306315 "2022-06-03T09:47:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 3

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**Author:** ![AS11](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/as11/32/106438_2.png) [@AS11](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/AS11)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2022, 10:29am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/how-to-make-nodes-forget-about-the-old-previous-cluster/306315/3 "2022-06-03T10:29:51Z")

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Thanks David. Here's what I did to now form a cluster between es3-5 nodes mentioned in OP.

```auto
service elasticsearch stop
rm -rf {path.data}/*
service elasticsearch start

```

I'd appreciate you confirming whether this is the ideal solution.

Also, thanks for [insisting that `elasticsearch-node` should only be used as a last resort](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/fix-broken-cluster-with-elasticsearch-node-detach-cluster-not-working/260070/18). Do I understand correctly that this is the preferred order to approach things:

1. if you have snapshots, then delete data-paths and restore from snapshots
2. if you do _not_ have snapshots, only then risk using `elasticsearch-node` as there's no other, third option anyway

What I'm not clear on is, doesn't option 1. guarantee data loss between 'now' and 'time-of-last-snapshot', as [also pointed out by Thomas in the same thread](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/fix-broken-cluster-with-elasticsearch-node-detach-cluster-not-working/260070/14)?

I initially, probably naively, hoped there'd be some way to surgically excise 'stale' nodes (in my case, es0,es1,es2 above) from `{path.data}/nodes/0/_state/`.

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_[View the full topic](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/how-to-make-nodes-forget-about-the-old-previous-cluster/306315)._