Saving the logical partition configuration to a partition profile

You can perform this procedure on active logical partitions and on logical partitions that are shut down. In either of these cases, the HMC reads the logical configuration that is stored for the logical partition in the server firmware and saves this logical configuration to the specified partition profile. For active logical partitions, the logical configuration that is stored in the server firmware is the current logical configuration of the logical partition. For logical partitions that are shut down, the logical configuration that is stored in the server firmware is the logical configuration at the time that you shut down the logical partition. Regardless of the state of the logical partition at the time that you perform this procedure, the procedure allows you to save the dynamic partitioning changes to a partition profile and use the partition profile to reactivate the logical partition without losing those changes.

After you shut down a logical partition, other logical partitions can use the resources that were used by that logical partition when the logical partition was active. Therefore, the resources available on the managed system might not support the logical partition configuration that is stored in the server firmware for the inactive logical partition. After you save the logical configuration of a logical partition that is shut down, verify that the resources available on the managed system can support the logical partition configuration that you saved to a partition profile.

When you save the logical configuration to a new partition profile, the desired amounts of memory, processors, processing units, and virtual processors in the new partition profile are set to the current amounts from the logical configuration. The minimum and maximum amounts of memory, processors, processing units, and virtual processors in the new partition profile are set to the minimum and maximum amounts from the logical configuration. For example, you start a logical partition using a partition profile that specifies a minimum of 512 MB of dedicated memory, a maximum of 2 GB of dedicated memory, and 1 GB as the desired amount of dedicated memory. The managed system has over 1 GB of physical memory available, so the logical partition has 1 GB of physical memory when it starts. You then add 1 GB of physical memory to the logical partition for a total of 2 GB of physical memory. If you shut down the logical partition and then save the logical configuration, the resulting partition profile specifies a minimum of 512 MB of dedicated memory, a maximum of 2 GB of dedicated memory, and 2 GB as the desired amount of dedicated memory.

The physical and virtual I/O devices that are set as required in the active partition profile are saved as required devices in the new partition profile. The physical and virtual I/O devices that are set as desired in the active partition profile or that were added to the logical partition through dynamic partitioning are saved as desired devices in the new partition profile. The partition workload group on the logical partition (if any) is saved as the partition workload group on the new partition profile.

To save the current configuration of a logical partition to a new partition profile using the HMC, complete the following: