Preparing for data migration from Red Hat Enterprise Linux

Learn how to upgrade and prepare your Red Hat Enterprise Linux® for the data migration.

This section provides information about preparing for a Linux data migration. This information only covers a data migration from Red Hat Enterprise Linux on an IBM® System i® or IBM eServer™ i5 model to Red Hat Enterprise Linux on an IBM System i model. To prepare to migrate your data from a server running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, complete the following tasks:

Prepare the source server

  1. Ensure the i5/OS® is running at least version 5 release 3.
  2. You must upgrade to Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3 before migrating to your target server.

    To upgrade to Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3, perform the following steps:

    1. Obtain a copy of the RHEL3 installation CD
    2. Vary off your Linux server by completing the following steps:
      1. Type WRKCFGSTS *NWS, and then press Enter.
      2. Type 2 next to the NWSD that you want to shutdown, and then press Enter.
    3. Place the first CD into the CD-ROM drive of the System i partition that is sharing its resources.
    4. Change the NWSD of the Linux server to point to the installation stream file of the CD by completing the following steps. Ensure you write down the information that you currently have for your NWSD.
      1. Enter CHGNWSD
      2. Specify the following information: 
        NWSD (servername)
IPLSRC (*STMF)
IPLSTMF ('/QOPT/Red_Hat/ppc/iseries/boot.img')
IPLPARM (*NONE)
    5. Open a virtual console session to your Linux server.
    6. Vary on your NWSD by completing the following steps:
      1. Type WRKCFGSTS *NWS, and then press Enter.
      2. Type 1 next to the NWSD that you want to start, and then press Enter.
    7. Follow the distribution documentation to complete the steps in the console.
  3. After you have upgraded to Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3, vary off your NWSD by completing the following steps:
    1. Type WRKCFGSTS *NWS, and then press Enter.
    2. Type 2 next to the NWSD that you want to shutdown, and then press Enter.
  4. Change the NWSD of the Linux server to point to the NWSSTG. Enter in the information that you previously wrote down before you changed the NWSD. Enter CHGNWSD to change the NWSD.
  5. Vary on your NWSD by completing the following steps:
    1. Type WRKCFGSTS *NWS, and then press Enter.
    2. Type 1 next to the NWSD that you want to start, and then press Enter.
  6. Locate a Linux distribution kernel that is compatible with an IBM System i model.
    Note: Even though you are upgrading from an IBM System i model, you need to install a System p® Linux kernel to ensure compatibility with an IBM System i model.
  7. Obtain access to an installation kernel through either of the following methods:
    • Linux installation CDs
    • Network based install source
  8. Ensure that your CD-ROM is mounted by entering the following command: 
    mount /dev/iseries/vcda /mnt/cdrom
    Note: Enter in the appropriate name for your virtual device in the previous command.
  9. Download the latest Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3 System p kernel to the partitions virtual disk. A System p Linux kernel is required to ensure compatibility with your IBM System i5® or eServer i5 model. If you have upgraded your Linux server to RHEL 3, you are still running the System i kernel and you need to obtain the System p kernel. For Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3, this kernel might be on the second installation CD under /Red_Hat/RPMS. The following is an example of how to download this kernel. Enter the first command, and then the second command to retrieve the name of your Linux kernel. Enter the last command to copy the kernel. 
    cd /media/
find . -name "kernel-pseries*"
cp cdrom/Red_Hat/RPMS/(name of your pseries kernel) /root/
  10. Shut down your Linux logical partition.
  11. Save the entire server using option 21 of the GO SAVE command. For more information, see the GO SAVE topic. Specify the following options:
    1. Vary off the network server...*ALL
    2. Unmount file systems..........Y
    Note: Ensure that you have two copies of the backup media.
  12. Using Linux back up tools, save any critical data contained within the virtual disk.
  13. Save and transfer your network server storage space (NWSSTG) by completing the following steps:
    1. Ensure that your Linux logical partition is shutdown.
    2. Create a savf using the command crtsavf. For example, the following command creates a save file named test1 in library QGPL: 
      QGPL: CRTSAVF FILE(QGPL/TEST1)
    3. Save your NWSSTG into the save file. Each NWSSTG has a directory under /QFPNWSSTG that is named the same as the NWSSTG. This directory contains the control file and files that contain your virtual disk. The following is an example that would save the LINUX530 NWSSTG: 
      SAV
DEV('QSYS.LIB/QGPL.LIB/TEST1.FILE')
OBJ('/QFPNWSSTG/LINUX530' *INCLUDE)
SUBTREE(*ALL)
      Notes:
      1. Two save files need to be created if you have your NWSSTG in a secondary auxiliary storage pool (ASP). Using the previous example, if LINUX530 was in storage space ASP2, then a save file must also be created of /DEV/QASP02/LINUX530.UDFS.
      2. This step creates a save file. You can use file transfer protocol (FTP) to send the save file to your target server.
      3. This step assumes that you want to use FTP to transfer the save file over. You can also use backup and recovery to transfer your save file over. See the Backup and Recovery Guide Link to PDF for more information.
      4. For information about saving your partitions to media, see the Backup and Recovery Guide Link to PDF topic.

What to do next:

Completing the data migration from Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 3