Author: Glenn Robinson
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Installing & Using the AIX Toolbox for Open Source Software
What is the AIX Toolbox for Open Source Software? Previously known as the AIX Toolbox for Linux Applications, the AIX Toolbox for Open Source Software (AIX OSS) is a collection of open source and GNU software built specifically for AIX. The toolkit provides open source utilities for managing and development, that is the choice for…
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Ansible AIX Introduction
In previous articles I dabbled with IBM’s Ansible modules for IBM i. Whilst I will definitely be using those in the future I thought I’d take a look at the Ansible modules for AIX too. There are fewer AIX modules than IBM i at present and many of these are NIM related. Whilst most AIX…
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More fun with Ansible for IBM i Messing about with Ansible for i modules
In this article I decided to make use of a number of the Ansible for i modules to demonstrate their use for more usual day to day CL related tasks. A word of warning before I start. The playbook I’ve developed is relatively long and contains all the variables and tasks in one yaml file. IF I were…
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Using Ansible with IBM i to install PTFs
In my previous article I introduced you to using the ibm.power_ibmi Ansible collection from IBM. I showed how to connect to your IBM i LPAR and vary on and off a device. Whilst that is mildly useful I wanted to write about something slightly more complex and, arguably, more useful. The ibmi_fix_imgclg module allows you…
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Ansible automation for IBM i
It’s been a few years since I last put together an article, but I’ve still remained involved with Power systems and IBM storage, specifically around VIOS and Spectrum Virtualize (Storwize). It is fair to say that the landscape is changing rapidly in IT with software driven technologies, cloud and devops. An age-old IT tenet is…
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VIOS SSP creation using the HMC Enhanced+ GUI
Every now and then you see something which takes you completely by surprise. This is even better when it’s something new to Power systems and makes life a whole lot easier. The HMC Enhanced+ GUI is getting a lot of stick, mostly from people who are used to the classic GUI and don’t want to…
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Customisation for the VIOS CLI
Something I’ve discussed previously but have refined recently is customising the VIOS CLI take make using the CLI and navigation a little easier. Whenever I install a VIOS LPAR the first thing I do is add in a couple of files I keep handy to do a few things for me: ● Amend the CLI…
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Creating and Mapping multiple LUs in SSP
If you’ve read any of my previous articles you’ll know that I’m a big fan of VIOS shared storage pools (SSP). I have been lambasted by a number of IBMers for using SSP instead of NPIV but my arguments are: SSPs are fast and will cope with 95%+ workloads on Power Why continue to use…
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Using the VIOS VMR for system backups
My previous article discussed how you can upload and load ISO images into the Virtual Media Repository (VMR) to provide virtual optical images to the client LPARs. You may recall that the mkvopt command has an option, -ro, which forces the access mode of the image to read only. When a VMR image is set…
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Tech tip: populating the VIOS Virtual Media Repository
One of the most useful features of VIOS is the Virtual Media Repository (VMR). This allows us to create and import ISO images and then map these to virtual DVD drives on our client LPARs. Most customers will use the VMR to store their IBM i and/or AIX install media and PTFs. Many AIX sites…
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Are you using the correct disk driver for your Storwize storage?
With so many customers now using Storwize and SVC storage in their Power environment with VIOS, it is important that we get the configuration of the system correct and supported. In the last few months, I have been involved with customers who already have their Power and Storwize systems up and running. Something I’ve found…
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Storwize CLI masterclass: executing multiple commands
In earlier articles, we’ve become familiar with running one-off CLI commands or sequences of commands. Quite often, though, it is useful to be able to execute a set of CLI commands from a server/desktop/laptop to instruct the Storwize system to carry out a number of tasks. A common requirement is to have Flashcopy commands sent…