Activating Virtual I/O Servers

You can activate Virtual I/O Servers by using the Hardware Management Console (HMC).

If you are using an HMC Enhanced interface, complete the following steps to activate a Virtual I/O Server (VIOS):

  1. In the navigation pane, expand Systems Management > Servers.
  2. In the work pane, select the server to which you want to add the VIOS.
  3. Select Manage PowerVM by using one of the following options to open the PowerVM Configuration page:
    • Click the menu next to the server name and select Manage PowerVM.
    • In the work pane, click Manage PowerVM.
  4. In the work pane, right-click a Virtual I/O Server and then click Operations > Activate.
  5. To complete the activation of the VIOS, continue with the instructions available in the Activating a logical partition topic.
Parent topic: Managing Virtual I/O Servers

Activating Virtual I/O Servers by using the HMC Enhanced+ interface

If you are using an HMC Enhanced+ interface, you can use an activation wizard and set the activation options to activate or network boot a Virtual I/O Server (VIOS). To activate a VIOS, complete the following steps:

  1. In the navigation pane, click the Resources icon The icon represents the Resources function of the HMC.
  2. Click All Systems. The All Systems page is displayed.
  3. In the work pane, select the server name where you want to activate the VIOS and click Actions > View System Properties. You can view and change the properties of the system that are listed under the PowerVM area.
  4. In the PowerVM area, click Virtual I/O Servers. The Virtual I/O Servers that are available on the system are displayed.
  5. In the work pane, select the VIOS and click Actions > Activate. The Install VIOS wizard opens with the Activate Virtual I/O Server tab displayed.
  6. From the Select VIOS Configuration list, select the required partition configuration profile. You can select only the profile that is associated to the selected partition. When you create a partition a default profile is always associated to the partition. This is indicated with the profile name being followed by default in parentheses.
    Note: If you choose Current Configuration, the Advanced Settings are unavailable.
  7. From the Activation Options list, select the activation option for the partition.
    • Select Activate to activate the partition.
      Note: If you select Activate, the Next button is not available and you can only click Finish to activate and close the wizard after making all your choices in the wizard.
    • Select Install to install the VIOS software on the partition. The HMC enables the network installation. When you select Install, click Next to install the VIOS software on the logical partition.
  8. Click Advanced Settings if you want to view and modify the following options for the selected partition:
    • Keylock Position establishes the power-on and power-off modes allowed for the system. You can select the following keylock values - Do not override configuration, Manual (attended), and Normal (unattended).
      Attention: The Manual (attended) value is not preferred value for security reasons.
    • Boot Mode indicates the activation type for a partition. This activation type is applicable only for AIX®, Linux, or Virtual I/O Server partitions. This option is not displayed for IBM® i partitions.
    • Open vterm opens a virtual terminal console.
    • Use VSI Profile activates the partition with Virtual Station Interface (VSI) profiles.
      Note: If the VSI attributes are not set correctly, the activation fails.
  9. If you selected Activate from the Activation Options list, click Finish to activate the VIOS partition and close the activation wizard.
  10. If you selected Install from the Activation Options list, click Next. The VIOS Installation Configuration tab is displayed.
  11. In the VIOS Installation Configuration tab, select the Installation Method by specifying the following options:
    • If you choose NIM server, specify the following options:
      1. In the NIM Server IP Address field, specify the Network Installation Management (NIM) server IP address. The NIM server IP address is the HMC IP address from which the VIOS IP address can be accessed. You can also view the MAC address of the system.
      2. Select an Ethernet adapter port.
      3. Specify the VIOS IP address, the Subnet Mask, and the Default Gateway used to configure the network on the VIOS.
    • If you choose Management Console Image, specify the following options:
      1. From the Management Console IPv4 Address list, select the IP address of the management console. You can also view the MAC address of the system.
      2. From the VIOS Image list, select the VIOS image.
      3. Select an Ethernet adapter port.
      4. Specify the VIOS IP address, the Subnet Mask, and the Default Gateway used to configure the network on the VIOS.
    • If you choose Manual Console Session, specify the following options:
      1. In the Boot mode field, specify the boot mode to start the operating system on the logical partition. The valid boot mode choices are - Normal, System Management Services (SMS), and Open Firmware OK.
      2. Select an Ethernet adapter port.
      3. Specify the VIOS IP address, the Subnet Mask, and the Default Gateway used to configure the network on the VIOS.
  12. In the VIOS Installation Configuration tab, click Advanced Settings to view and change the following configuration settings for the selected partition:
    1. From the Adapter Speed list, select the speed of the Ethernet adapter for the target partition. By default, Auto is selected to enable the system to determine the required speed for the adapter. You can also select the following values - 10, 100, or 1000.
    2. From the Adapter Duplex list, select duplex value for the Ethernet adapter. By default, Auto is selected to enable the system to determine the required duplex for the adapter. You can also select the Full or Half values.
    3. From the VLAN Tag Priority list, select the virtual local area network (VLAN) tag priority value to determine the priority of the client partition. You can select the VLAN priority within the range 0 to 7. The default value is 0.
    4. In the VLAN Tag Identifier field, specify a valid value. The valid value is in the range 1 - 4094.
  13. Click Next. The VIOS Installation Progress tab is displayed.
  14. In the VIOS Installation Progress tab, click Start to start the VIOS software installation on the VIOS. You must accept the VIOS licenses for each VIOS.
  15. Click Finish to activate and complete the VIOS software installation. The Install VIOS wizard closes.


Last updated: Tue, June 12, 2018