Configuring a virtual Ethernet adapter using version 6 or earlier of the HMC

You can configure a virtual Ethernet adapter dynamically for a running logical partition. Doing so will connect the logical partition to a virtual LAN.

You can dynamically configure a virtual Ethernet adapter for a Linux® logical partition only if the following conditions are met:

A Linux distribution that supports dynamic logical partitioning is installed on the Linux logical partition. Distributions that support dynamic logical partitioning include Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 4, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9, and later versions of these distributions.
The DynamicRM tool package is installed on the Linux logical partition. For more information on the DynamicRM tool package, see the Service and productivity tools Web site.

To configure a virtual Ethernet adapter dynamically on a running logical partition using version 6 or earlier of the HMC, follow these steps:

In the navigation area, open Server and Partition.
Select Server Management.
In the contents area, expand the managed system on which the logical partition that will use the Ethernet adapter resides.
Expand Partitions.
Right-click the logical partition that will use the virtual Ethernet adapter and select Dynamic Logical Partitioning > Virtual Adapter Resources > Add/Remove.
Select the Virtual I/O tab.
In the Create Adapters area, select Ethernet and click Create. The Virtual Ethernet Adapter Properties window appears.
Enter the slot number for the virtual Ethernet adapter.
Enter the Port Virtual LAN ID (PVID) for the virtual Ethernet adapter. The PVID allows the virtual Ethernet adapter to communicate other virtual Ethernet adapters that have the same PVID.
If the logical partition is an AIX®, Linux, or Virtual I/O Server logical partition, select the IEEE 802.1Q-compatible adapter check box if you want to configure the virtual Ethernet adapter to communicate over multiple virtual LANs. If you leave this option unchecked and you want this partition to connect to multiple virtual networks, then you need to create multiple virtual adapters by creating additional virtual LAN IDs.
Click OK .

After you have finished, access any existing partition profiles for the logical partition and add the virtual Ethernet adapters to those partition profiles. The virtual Ethernet adapter will be lost if you shut down the logical partition and activate the logical partition using a partition profile that does not have the virtual Ethernet adapter in it.