System requirements for IBM Optim Data Privacy

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Before you can install IBM® Optim Data Privacy, you must ensure that you have the required hardware, software, and storage.

This section outlines the hardware, software, and platform requirements for deploying and operating IBM Optim Data Privacy. These requirements ensure optimal performance, security, and compatibility across supported environments.

Supported platforms

IBM Optim Data Privacy supports deployment on the following platforms:

Table 1. Platform support
Platform Notes
Linux® (x86_64)
Recommended for production deployments:
- Red Hat® Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 9.4 or higher
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10.0
Podman Required for container deployment and management

Supported databases and cloud storage

IBM Optim Data Privacy supports several databases and cloud storage solutions.

Databases

You can use different database types as source or target connections in IBM Optim. For the full list of supported database connections, see Supported data sources and targets in IBM Optim Data Privacy.

Some database solutions have limitations within IBM Optim. For details, see Known issues and limitations.

Cloud storage
You can use the following cloud storage solutions as target connections in IBM Optim:
  • Amazon S3
  • Microsoft Azure Blob Storage

Supported browsers

For the best experience with the IBM Optim user interface and this documentation, use one of the supported web browsers. Otherwise, you might experience limits to functionality.

Use the latest versions of these web browsers:

  • Google Chrome
  • Mozilla Firefox
  • Safari
  • Microsoft Edge Tech preview

Software requirements

IBM Optim Data Privacy requires the following prerequisite software:

Runtime components

IBM Optim deployments consist of the following containerized services:

  • IBM Optim UI: React-based interface using IBM Carbon Design System
  • IBM Optim CoreAPI: Central processing layer for workflow orchestration
  • IBM Optim Runtime: Executes workflows, masking, and data operations
  • IBM Optim MetastoreDB: Stores metadata by using PostgreSQL or EDB
  • IBM Optim Keycloak: Implements Keycloak for authentication and authorization
  • IBM Optim Spark: For large-scale data processing
Dependencies

IBM Optim has the following software dependencies:

Table 2. Software dependencies
Component Requirement
Java™ Runtime Required for JVM-based services. Included in IBM Optim images.
Keycloak Integrated for user management. Included in IBM Optim images.
PostgreSQL Required for metadata storage. Included in IBM Optim images.
Podman Required for container execution and management.
Swagger/OpenAPI Used for REST API documentation. Included in IBM Optim images.

Hardware requirements

IBM Optim requires the following minimum hardware specifications:

Table 3. Hardware specifications
Resource Minimum requirement
CPU 8 cores
Memory 32 GB RAM, with 16 GB dedicated to the Spark container
Disk space 250 GB minimum for the installation path, plus 250 GB for the archive storage path.
Tip: The installation pre-check validates disk space on the configured storage paths (metadata and workflow directories), not the root volume. If you are using SAN or NAS drives mounted to the host, ensure that your mounted volumes are formatted and recognised by the operating system and that the correct mount paths are set in the .env file before you run the setup script. For details, see Using mounted or extended storage volumes.
Network 1 Gbps Ethernet
Note: For high-volume workloads or CI/CD integration, allocate additional CPU and memory resources to the IBM Optim Runtime container.

Security requirements

IBM Optim has the following security requirements and considerations:

Authentication

Keycloak integrated with enterprise LDAP, SAML, OIDC, or Kerberos

Authorization

Role-based access control (Administrator or User)

Data protection
  • Encryption for data at rest
  • Masking and de-identification
  • Secure API communication using JWT tokens
Compliance
IBM Optim Data Privacy supports GDPR, HIPAA, and other data privacy regulations.

Installation requirements

IBM Optim has the following installation requirements:

Container runtime

Podman

For more information about installation prerequisites, see Prerequisites.