Learn about system plan concepts and operations, as well as understand
the high-level tasks that you can perform with system plans when using the Hardware Management Console (HMC).
A system plan is a specification of the hardware
and the logical partitions contained in one or more systems. A system plan
is stored in a system-plan file, which has a file suffix of .sysplan.
A system-plan file can contain more than one system plan, although multiple
plans in a single file are not common. After you create a system plan, you
also can also view, delete, and export the system plan.
System plans have a number of valuable uses. For example, you can use system
plans to accomplish the following goals:
- You can create a system plan as a means of capturing up-to-date system
documentation. The system plan provides a record of the hardware and partition
configuration of the managed system at a given time.
- You can use a system plan that you create for system documentation as
part of your disaster recovery planning. You can export the system-plan file
to an offsite location or to removable media for offsite storage so that you
have the system documentation that you need available to you if you must recover
a managed system.
- You can use system plans as audit records to track system resources for
accounting and accountability purposes by exporting them to a spreadsheet.
- You can use system plans to help you plan new workloads that require additional
system and hardware resources. You can use a system plan, along with appropriate
capacity planning information, to make decisions about whether your current
system can handle a new workload.
- You can deploy this system plan to other systems that this HMC manages
that have hardware that is identical to the hardware in the system plan.
In this way, you can rapidly configure and use other, similar systems in your
business.
- You can export the system plan to another HMC and
use it to deploy the system plan to other systems that the target HMC manages that have hardware
that is identical to the hardware in the system plan. In this case and the
previous case, you can use the system plan to create logical partitions on
new managed systems that do not already have logical partitions created on
them.
To create logical partitions from a system plan, you must first complete
the following tasks:
- Create the system plan.
- Import the system plan (when necessary).
- Deploy the system plan.
After you create a system plan, you also can also view, delete, and export
the system plan. The following table provides a complete overview of system
plan tasks.
Table 1. Overview of the tasks for system plans| Task |
Overview |
|---|
| Create a system plan |
You can create system plans by using any of the following
methods: - System Planning Tool (SPT)
SPT helps
you design a system to fit your needs, whether you want to design a logically
partitioned system or to design an unpartitioned system. SPT incorporates
the function from Workload Estimator (WLE) to help you create
an overall system plan. The SPT opens the WLE to help you gather and integrate
workload data, and provides advanced users with the option of creating a system
plan without the help of additional tools.
To help you get started,
SPT provides the following options: - You can use the sample system plans that SPT provides as a starting point
for planning your system
- You can create a system plan based on existing performance data
- You can create a system plan based on new or anticipated workloads
- You can export a system plan as a .cfr file and import it into the marketing
configurator (eConfig) tool to use for ordering a system. When you import
the .cfr file into the eConfig tool, the tool populates your order with the
information from the .cfr file. However, the .cfr file does not contain all
the information that the eConfig tool requires and you will need to enter
all required information before you can submit your order.
- Hardware Management Console (HMC) Web user interface
You
can use the HMC to create
a system plan based on the configuration of one managed system and can use
the HMC to deploy that
plan to another managed system. Based on the logical partition configuration
in the system plan, the HMC creates
logical partitions on the managed system to which it deploys the system plan.
Depending on the contents of the system plan, the HMC can
install operating environments on the partitions in the plan and, if the plan
contains Virtual I/O Server provisioning
information for a partition, such as storage assignments, the HMC can
make these resource assignments for the partition.
- HMC command-line interface
You
also can use the mksysplan command to create a system plan. After the
system plan is created, you can also use the command-line interface to deploy
that plan to a managed system. Based on the logical partition configuration
in the system plan, the HMC creates
logical partitions on the managed system to which it deploys the system plan.
|
| Import the system plan |
Before you can use a system plan to create logical partitions,
the system-plan file must exist on the HMC that
manages the managed system to which you want to deploy the system plan. If
the system-plan file does not already exist on the HMC,
you must import the file into the HMC.
You can use the HMC Web
user interface to import the file into the HMC from
one of the following sources: - Upload the system-plan file from the remote console (the
computer from which you remotely access the HMC)
- Copy the system-plan file to media (optical disc or USB drive), insert
the media into the HMC,
and import the file from the media.
- Download the system-plan file from a remote FTP site.
Note: You can also use the HMC command-line
interface to import a system plan.
After you import the system-plan
file into an HMC, you
can deploy the system plan within that file to other systems that the HMC manages.
|
| Deploy the system plan |
You can choose to deploy a system plan in stages, with
some logical partitions being created in one stage, and other logical partitions
being created in later stages. You cannot, however, deploy a system plan to
a managed system if the managed system already has logical partitions. The
managed system must be in the manufacturing default configuration. Also, if
you want to deploy a system plan in stages, you need to create a new system
plan if you change the resource allocations on the logical partitions on the
managed system between stages to avoid validation problems in later stages.
When you deploy a system plan by using the HMC Web
user interface, the HMC validates
the system plan. The managed system on which you deploy a system plan must
have hardware that is identical to the hardware in the system plan. The HMC deploys a system plan to a
managed system only if the system plan level is supported by the HMC, the format of the system plan
is valid, and the hardware and each existing logical partition on the managed
system passes validation.
If the system plan contains
installation information about the Virtual I/O Server,
you can use the Deploy System Plan wizard to install the Virtual I/O Server and
assign virtual networking and storage resources for the client logical partitions.
|
| Export the system plan |
You can use the HMC Web
user interface to export a system-plan file from the HMC to
one of the following locations: - Save the system-plan file to the remote console (the
computer from which you remotely access the HMC).
- Export the system-plan file to media that is mounted to the HMC (such
as optical discs or USB drives).
- Download the system-plan file to a remote FTP site.
Note: You can also use the HMC command-line
interface to export a system plan.
|
| View the system plan |
You can look at the contents of a system-plan
file in the HMC by using
the System Plan Viewer that is integrated with the HMC.
The System Plan Viewer uses a navigation tree and tables to display the information
in the system-plan file. It includes features such as dynamic table-column
sorting and displaying EADS boundary lines. You can open a system plan in
the System Plan Viewer, either by using the View System Plan task or by clicking
the name of a system plan. When you start the System Plan Viewer, you must
enter your HMC user ID
and password before you can view the system plan. |
| Print the system plan |
You can use the System Plan Viewer to print
a system plan that you have open in the Viewer. You can print all of the system
plan or a portion of the system plan, depending on the current view of the
system plan. To print the current view of the system plan, click Print in
the Actions pane of the System Plan Viewer. |
| Delete the system plan |
You can delete unnecessary system plans from your HMC. |
Optimizing system plan hardware
information
The amount of hardware information that the HMC can capture in a new system
plan varies based on the method that the HMC uses
to gather the hardware information. Setting up your environment to maximize
inventory gathering allows the HMC to
capture more complete information about the hardware allocated to the partitions
on the managed system. For example, the HMC can capture disk drive and tape
drive configuration information for an active partition in the new system
plan. However, doing so can cause system plan creation to take several more
minutes to complete.
There are two methods that the
HMC potentially
can use:
- Inventory gathering, which is available for HMC Version
7 Release 3.1.0 and later
- Hardware discovery, which is available for some systems with HMC Version 7 Release 3.2.0 and
later
System plan inventory gathering
The
HMC always
performs inventory gathering to capture detailed information for hardware
that has an assignment to an active partition.
Note: Beginning
with HMC Version 7.3.2,
you can use the hardware discovery process to gather information about hardware
assignments for an inactive partition or hardware on a managed system that
does not have a partition assignment.
To optimize the amount
of and type of hardware information that the inventory-gathering process is
able to capture, ensure that you meet the following prerequisites and conditions:
Note: It is possible for a partition to have
more than one HMC set
up to manage it. In this situation, if the partition is an i5/OS partition
and you want to use RMC to create a new system plan, ensure that you create
the system plan from the primary HMC for the partition because redundant HMCs cannot use RMC.
System
plan hardware discovery
In some cases, the HMC Version
7.3.2 can use hardware discovery, in addition to the inventory-gathering process,
to capture hardware information for a new system plan. Using hardware discovery,
you can capture information about hardware that does not have a partition
assignment, as well as hardware with assignments to inactive partitions.
On a system that can use hardware discovery, the hardware discovery
process runs whenever the system is powered on in
hardware discovery mode.
The hardware discovery process writes hardware inventory information to a
cache on the system. The hardware inventory cache ensures that a certain amount
of hardware information is available on the system when you create a system
plan. The
HMC can capture
the information in the cache for a system plan when partitions are active
and the
HMC cannot perform
fresh hardware discovery on the partition.
Note: It is recommended that you
power on the system in hardware discovery mode whenever you add or change
hardware on the system.
If the managed system is capable of hardware
discovery, the Create System Plan page provides an additional option that
you can select to capture a broader range of hardware information for the
new system plan. This option, called Retrieve inactive and unallocated
hardware resources, allows you to capture hardware configuration
information for the managed system, regardless of the state of the hardware.
When
you create a system plan and do not select the Retrieve inactive
and unallocated hardware resources option, the HMC does
not perform hardware discovery. The HMC still
performs inventory gathering and retrieves hardware information for any active
partitions on the managed server. The resulting new system plan contains hardware
information from the inventory-gathering process, as well as hardware information
from the hardware inventory cache on the system.
To use the hardware
discovery process, ensure that you meet the following prerequisites and conditions:
- Available processing capability:
- The hardware discovery process requires a minimum .5 processor be available
for it to use.
- Memory capability:
- The hardware discovery process requires a minimum of 256 MB of free memory
for it to use.
- Partition state:
- To maximize the information that the hardware discovery process can capture,
partitions on the managed server must be inactive. If a partition is active,
the hardware discovery process cannot capture fresh information from the partition
and instead retrieves information about the hardware assigned to the inactive
partition from the hardware inventory cache on the managed system.
By setting up your system to optimize the hardware information
that you capture in a system plan that you create by using the HMC,
you ensure that your system plan provides you with the most valuable information
possible. It also ensures that you have the most usable
configuration information possible when you convert the system plan for use
in the System Planning Tool (SPT).
The following table describes the type of hardware information that you can
expect to see in a system plan that you convert, based on the system management
product that you use to create the plan.
Table 2. Type of hardware information available in a system plan that you create
in the HMC and convert
to use in the SPT| Expected Conversion Results |
|---|
| Partition |
HMC version
7 release 3.1.0 and earlier |
HMC version
7 release 3.2.0 and later |
Integrated Virtualization Manager |
|---|
| i5/OS |
Most cards. No disk, tape, CD, SCSI. |
More cards. Some disk. No tape, CD, SCSI. |
Not applicable. |
| All other operating systems |
Very few cards. No disk, tape, CD, SCSI. |
Most cards. Some disk. No tape, CD, SCSI. |
Few, if any, cards. No disk, tape, CD, SCSI. |
System plan validation
When validating the hardware
on the managed system, the
HMC compares
the following information from the system plan with the hardware available
on the managed system:
- Processor and memory amounts, including
5250 commercial processing workload (5250 CPW) where applicable
- Physical I/O adapter placement
The hardware described in the system plan passes validation if
it matches the hardware specified by the managed system. The hardware on the
managed system can contain resources in addition to those specified in the
system plan and still pass validation, but the hardware on the managed system
must at least match the hardware specified in the system plan.
For
example, a system plan specifies a server with two processors, 8 GB of memory,
and a specific placement of physical I/O adapters within the system unit.
A server that contains two processors, 16 GB of memory, a matching placement
of physical I/O adapters within the system unit, and an expansion unit with
additional physical I/O adapters would allow the system to pass validation.
A server that contains 4 GB of memory can cause the system to fail validation.
A system plan can also fail validation if the system plan specifies one type
of physical I/O adapter in a slot but the actual system unit has a different
type of physical I/O adapter in that slot. However, if the system plan specifies
an empty slot, validation allows any type of physical I/O adapter to be in
that slot on the actual system.
The HMC does
not validate the disk drives that are attached to physical I/O adapters against
the disk drives specified in the system plan. You must ensure that the disk
drives installed in the managed system support your desired logical partition
configuration. Embedded devices automatically pass hardware validation because
they are embedded into the system and cannot be removed.
If any step
fails, validation fails for the existing logical partition. Any existing partition
found on the managed system must appear in the system plan and must match
the system plan as it appears in the managed system. For example, hardware
on the managed system must at least match the hardware specified in the system
plan. When validating an existing logical partition, the
HMC validates
the following items for that logical partition:
- Is there a logical partition in the system plan that has the same partition
ID as the existing logical partition specified in the machine default configuration?
- Does the existing logical partition have partition profiles that match
each partition profile specified for the logical partition in the system plan?
- Do the partition profiles for the existing logical partitions contain
the resources specified in the corresponding partition profiles in the system
plan?
For example, if the server has an existing logical partition with
a partition ID of 1, the HMC examines
the logical partition in the system plan that has a partition ID of 1. If
this logical partition exists and has a partition profile that is named SUPPORT,
the HMC looks at the existing
logical partition to see if it also has a partition profile that is named
SUPPORT. If so, the HMC verifies
that the resources specified in the SUPPORT partition profile in the system
plan are contained in the SUPPORT partition profile in the existing logical
partition.
When the
HMC validates
partition profiles, it compares the following resources in the partition profiles:
- Processor and memory amounts, including
5250 commercial processing workload (5250 CPW) where applicable
- Physical I/O slot assignments
The following examples illustrate how the
HMC compares
resources in the partition profiles during the validation process to determine
whether the system plan is valid for a managed system:
- If the SUPPORT partition profile in the system plan specifies 2 GB of
memory and the SUPPORT partition profile for the existing logical partition
specifies 3 GB of memory, the amount of memory is valid.
- If the SUPPORT partition profile in the system plan specifies 4 GB of
memory and the SUPPORT partition profile for the existing logical partition
specifies 3 GB of memory, the amount of memory is not valid.
- If physical I/O slot P1 is assigned to the SUPPORT partition profile in
the system plan but not to the SUPPORT partition profile for the existing
logical partition, the physical slot assignment is not valid.
- If physical I/O slot P2 is not assigned to the SUPPORT partition profile
in the system plan, it does not matter whether slot P2 is assigned to the
SUPPORT partition profile for the existing logical partition.
If the system plan contains installation information
for the Virtual I/O Server, you
can use the Deploy System Plan wizard to install the Virtual I/O Server and
to set up virtual networking and storage resources for the client logical
partitions of the Virtual I/O Server.
Note: The HMC cannot
install AIX® or Linux or i5/OS operating environments
on logical partitions.
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