Installing an operating system or hypervisor in a partition

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When you define a partition, you can specify the boot option through which DPM locates and installs the executables for the hypervisor or operating system to be run on the partition. You can select a boot option through the Boot section of the Create Partition task or, for an existing partition, the Partition Details task.

If you are using the Create Partition task, or using the Partition Details task, you also have the option of setting a time limit for the boot operation. By default, the time-out setting has a value of 60 seconds.

Select a boot option that is appropriate for the type of partition that you are defining.

Boot options for Linux partitions

For partitions with a type of Linux, you can choose one of several different options, including booting from a storage device, network server, and Hardware Management Console (HMC) removable media. The following list provides a summary of boot options for Linux® partitions; for more detail about boot options, see Creating a new partition, or use the online help for the Create Partition task or the Partition Details task.

Storage device
Select this option when the hypervisor or operating system executable reside on an internal or external storage device. This option is available only when at least one storage group is attached to the partition. When you specify this option, you need to select a boot volume in an attached storage group; you can select a boot volume in any attached FCP, FICON, or NVMe storage group. If you plan to boot the operating system or hypervisor from a volume in an NVMe storage group, check the product documentation for the operating system or hypervisor to make sure that it supports booting from NVMe storage.

To attach a storage device, go to I/O Connectivity, select the boot type as Storage Device, then click Select Boot Volume. From there, choose a storage group, select the desired boot volume, and click Select Boot Volume again to confirm your selection.

Note: Starting with DPM R4.0, you can select options to validate the operating system image that you boot from a volume in a storage group. For more information, see Validating boot images of operating systems.
Network server (PXE)
Select this option when you want to use a preboot execution environment (PXE) on a network server. This option is available only if a network interface card (NIC) for an OSA port, Network Express, or HiperSockets Partition Link is defined for the partition. (Depending on the DPM version that is available in the HMC, a HiperSockets switch is configured for a partition either through the Configure Partition Links task for a HiperSockets partition link, or through the Network section of the Create Partition or Partition Details task.)
Installation image

Select the location of the installation files that are required to start an operating system or hypervisor for this partition.

FTP server
Select this option if you want to use FTP server to boot an image that is located on a different system. Provide the following information:
Protocol
Select the protocol:
  • FTP - Select this option if you want to use the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) to boot an image that is located on a different system.
  • FTPS - Select this option if you want to use the FTP Secure (FTPS) protocol to boot an image that is located on a different system. FTPS uses the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol to secure data.
  • SFTP - Select this option if you want to use the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to boot an image that is located on a different system. SFTP uses the Secure Shell (SSH) protocol to secure data.
Host name
Enter either the fully qualified domain name of the FTP server, or its IP address.
User name
Enter the user name on the target FTP server.
Password
Enter the password associated with the user name on the target server.
INS file
Either click Browse to retrieve a list of INS files from the target FTP server and select one file, or enter the fully qualified name (relative to FTP root) of an INS file.

Depending on the size, browsing might require more time than manually entering the full path and name of the INS file. Also note that the browsing function returns INS files found in the user's home directory or its subdirectories. Because you cannot select a starting directory, or navigate to a directory above the user's home directory, manually entering the full path and name of the INS file might be more expedient.

If you click Browse, a separate window displays the user's home directory and its subdirectories. Select one INS file, and click OK to close the window.

ISO image
Select this option when you want to upload an ISO file that is located on your workstation file system. This option is available only when you are connecting to the HMC through a remote browser.
When you select this option:
  1. Click Select ISO Image for upload to find the ISO image file on your workstation file system. .
  2. Click Select file to search the ISO image file for the INS file that you want to use. Any INS files found are displayed in a separate window. Select only one INS file and click OK to close the Browse ISO Image window.
HMC USB flash drive
Select this option if you want to use an INS file from a media drive that is connected to the HMC. The media drive must be available when you are creating the partition definition and when the partition is started.
When you select this option:
  1. If more than one type of media drive is available on the HMC, select the radio button for the media drive on which the INS file resides. Otherwise, skip to the next step.
  2. Either enter the fully qualified name (relative to the mount point) of an INS file, or complete the following steps.
    1. Select Browse to start a search on the target media drive to retrieve a list of INS files. Any INS files found are displayed in a separate window.
    2. Select only one INS file and click OK to close the Browse Removable Media window.
None
Select this option only if your desired option needs preparation and is not yet available state.

Boot options for z/VM partitions

For partitions with a type of z/VM, you can choose one of several boot options that are described in step 4 of the following procedure, which provides an overview of the DPM-specific portion of a traditional, first-level z/VM® installation process. For complete instructions, use the Installation Guide for the version of z/VM that you are installing. The z/VM library is available in IBM® Documentation at https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/zvm

  1. Prepare to access the installation files. Note that, depending on the system, a DVD drive might not be available on the HMC. In this case, you can use an alternate HMC media drive instead of a DVD drive, or use an electronic deliverable.
    • If you are using the Hardware Management Console removable media boot option, load the z/VM product DVD in the HMC DVD drive. Note that, when you select this option, installation can take up to several hours to complete.
    • If you are using any of the FTP boot options, upload the contents of each DVD or electronic deliverable to a new directory on the FTP server. After the contents of the z/VM product deliverable have been uploaded, upload the contents of the installation recommended service upgrade (RSU) deliverable to the same directory, overwriting any duplicate files. (For details about directory path names and required space, see the z/VM Installation Guide.)
    • If you are using the ISO image boot option, complete the following steps.
      1. Upload the contents of each DVD or electronic deliverable to a new directory on your hard drive.
      2. After the contents of the z/VM product deliverable have been uploaded, upload the contents of the installation recommended service upgrade (RSU) deliverable to the same directory, overwriting any duplicate files. (For details about directory path names and required space, see the z/VM Installation Guide.)
      3. Using the tool of your choice, create an ISO image file of the directory.
  2. On the main HMC page, expand the Systems Management node to view managed systems, and select the DPM-enabled system on which the partition resides. On the Partitions tab for the selected system, find the table entry for the z/VM partition, and select it.
  3. Open an integrated 3270 console for the partition in which you are installing z/VM. You can open the Integrated 3270 Console task through the cascading task menu next to the partition name, or through the Recovery category in the task area.
  4. Open the Partition Details task and navigate to the Boot section.
    1. Specify one of the following boot options, and select the INS file for the version of z/VM that you are installing; for example, 710VM.ins

      FTP server
      Select this option if you want to use FTP server to boot an image that is located on a different system. Provide the following information:
      Protocol
      Select the protocol:
      • FTP - Select this option if you want to use the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) to boot an image that is located on a different system.
      • FTPS - Select this option if you want to use the FTP Secure (FTPS) protocol to boot an image that is located on a different system. FTPS uses the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol to secure data.
      • SFTP - Select this option if you want to use the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to boot an image that is located on a different system. SFTP uses the Secure Shell (SSH) protocol to secure data.
      Host name
      Enter either the fully qualified domain name of the FTP server, or its IP address.
      User name
      Enter the user name on the target FTP server.
      Password
      Enter the password associated with the user name on the target server.
      INS file
      Either click Browse to retrieve a list of INS files from the target FTP server and select one file, or enter the fully qualified name (relative to FTP root) of an INS file.

      Depending on the size, browsing might require more time than manually entering the full path and name of the INS file. Also note that the browsing function returns INS files found in the user's home directory or its subdirectories. Because you cannot select a starting directory, or navigate to a directory above the user's home directory, manually entering the full path and name of the INS file might be more expedient.

      If you click Browse, a separate window displays the user's home directory and its subdirectories. Select one INS file, and click OK to close the window.

      ISO image
      Select this option when you want to upload an ISO file that is located on your workstation file system. This option is available only when you are connecting to the HMC through a remote browser.
      When you select this option:
      1. Click Select ISO Image for upload to find the ISO image file on your workstation file system. .
      2. Click Select file to search the ISO image file for the INS file that you want to use. Any INS files found are displayed in a separate window. Select only one INS file and click OK to close the Browse ISO Image window.
      HMC USB flash drive
      Select this option if you want to use an INS file from a media drive that is connected to the HMC. The media drive must be available when you are creating the partition definition and when the partition is started.
      When you select this option:
      1. If more than one type of media drive is available on the HMC, select the radio button for the media drive on which the INS file resides. Otherwise, skip to the next step.
      2. Either enter the fully qualified name (relative to the mount point) of an INS file, or complete the following steps.
        1. Select Browse to start a search on the target media drive to retrieve a list of INS files. Any INS files found are displayed in a separate window.
        2. Select only one INS file and click OK to close the Browse Removable Media window.
    2. Select OK to save the boot option in the partition definition, and close the Partition Details window.
  5. Using one of the following methods, open the Start task to start the partition.
    1. From the entry for the selected partition on the Partitions tab, select the double-arrow icon in the Name field to display the cascading task menu, and select Start.
    2. Expand the Daily category in the task area, and select Start.

    A new window opens to display the progress of the start operation. In addition to displaying a progress indicator, this window also contains a Details column with messages that are updated as the start process continues. These messages indicate the progress of configuring partition resources and initializing the z/VM RAMDISK. If the start process is successful, the z/VM system loads with the MAINT user ID logged on.

  6. Through the Integrated 3270 Console window, run the DVDPRIME command with the dasdtype and source that you are using to install.
    dasdtype
    Specify either 3390 or FBA.
    source
    Specify the source value that corresponds to the boot option that you specified.
    • For the Hardware Management Console removable media boot option, specify dvd as the source.
    • For the FTP boot options, specify server as the source.
    • For the ISO image boot option, specify dvd as the source.
  7. Complete the installation by following the instructions in the z/VM Installation Guide for a non-Single System Image (SSI) traditional installation.

Boot option for Secure Service Container partitions

DPM automatically sets the boot option for Secure Service Container partitions to Secure Service Container. This boot option cannot be changed.

For more information about creating and using Secure Service Container partitions, see the appropriate edition of Secure Service Container User's Guide, which is available on IBM Documentation. Go to https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/systems-hardware, select IBM Z or IBM LinuxONE, then select your configuration, and click Library Overview on the navigation bar.