Software installation process

The IBM i software installation process involves three phases: preinstallation activities, the main installation, and postinstallation activities.

1. Preinstallation activities:

   To plan and prepare your system before you install your software, follow the appropriate planning and preparation topics to guide you through the activities that you need to do.

   • Upgrading to IBM i 7.3: Checklist: IBM i software upgrade or replacement readiness
   • Replacing Licensed Internal Code and IBM i of the same version and release to support new hardware: Checklist: IBM i software replacement
   • Installing IBM i 7.3 on a new system or logical partition: Checklist: IBM i software installation readiness

   These activities include verifying your order, checking the amount of available disk space, backing up your system, ensuring you have the minimum load-source disk size, allocating additional LIC space, and cleaning your media device. In a software upgrade or replacement, some of the tasks are required. If you do not perform these required tasks, you will be forced to restart the installation.

2. The installation process:

   The installation process begins when you start performing the instructions in one of the procedural topics. For example, to upgrade to the new release, you might have chosen automatic installation. The automatic installation process installs the Licensed Internal Code, the IBM i operating system, and related licensed programs. In the automatic installation method of upgrading, you have minimal interaction with the system except to load the optical distribution media and to monitor the system.

   Your only installation activity might be changing the primary language or installing additional licensed programs. Or, perhaps you want to perform these activities after an automatic or manual installation.

3. Postinstallation activities:

   The last step of each procedure directs you to use a completion checklist. You might be directed to additional steps, such as saving your system and performing installation activities on workstations for IBM i Access Family products. Other activities could include customizing your system, or setting usage limits for user-based priced products. Before you begin production work on your system, be sure to adequately protect your system from unauthorized use.

   The following figure shows an example of one type of software installation for IBM i 7.3. (Your particular installation might not include all of the topics that are shown in this figure.)

   

The procedure that you use for software installation depends on what you plan to install.

Install software on a new system

If you just received a new system, the operating system and other licensed programs might or might not be installed already.

Upgrade or replace existing software

If you are upgrading or replacing your existing IBM i software, use either the automatic installation method or the manual installation method.

Automatic installation

This replaces your existing release with minimal user interaction. The automatic installation process keeps the current environment and system values. The process will add all nonconfigured disk units to the system auxiliary storage pool (ASP) and will retain the ASP configuration of previously configured disk units. The automatic installation process is recommended for use with most systems.

Manual installation

This interactively replaces your existing release by using the Work with Licensed Programs menu. Displays that require responses appear on the console. During a manual installation, you can change installation options. Use the manual installation process if you are doing any of the following installation procedures:

• Adding a disk device to a user auxiliary storage pool.
• Changing the environment (IBM i or System/36), system values, language feature code, or configuration values.
• Planning to use an alternate installation device when you upgrade.
• Creating logical partitions during the installation process.
• Using media created with the Save System (SAVSYS) command. (The SAVSYS command creates media that are meant for recovery.)

Add licensed programs

When you add additional licensed programs or optional parts of licensed programs, you use the method done through option 11 (Install licensed programs) of the Work with Licensed Programs (LICPGM) menu. Typically you use option 11 when you need to install a new licensed program or to replace a single licensed program.

Add or change globalization support

When you add a secondary language, you add additional language objects for the licensed programs that are installed on your system.

When you change the primary language, you replace the existing language objects. Depending on the procedure that you use, you can also replace program objects.

If a failure occurs during the installation process, Troubleshooting software installation problems contains information that can help you determine the problem and the necessary recovery steps.