Network Installation Management

AIX® Network Installation Management (NIM) allows you to manage the installation of the Base Operating System (BOS) and optional software on one or more machines.

You can install a group of machines with a common configuration or customize an installation for the specific needs of a given machine. The number of machines you can install simultaneously depends on the throughput of your network, the disk access throughput of the installation servers, and the platform type of your servers.

The NIM environment includes client and server machines. A server provides resources (for example, files and programs required for installation) to another machine. A machine that is dependent on a server to provide resources is known as a client. Any machine that receives NIM resources is a client, although the same machine can also be a server in the overall network environment.

Most installation tasks in the NIM environment are performed from one server, called the master. A set of installation tasks can also be performed from NIM clients. Once the network installation setup is complete, users of standalone clients can, from the client, install software that is available on NIM servers.