Common Information Model
The Common Information Model (CIM) is a standard that is developed by Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF). DMTF is a consortium of major hardware and software vendors (including IBM) that is a part of the Web-Based Enterprise Management (WBEM) initiative.
WBEM includes a set of standards and technologies that provide management solutions for a distributed network environment. Interoperability is a major focus of WBEM. WBEM technologies can help you develop a single set of management applications for a diverse set of resources.
CIM is a major component of the WBEM initiative that provides a model for describing and accessing data across an enterprise. CIM comprises both a specification and a schema. The specification defines the details for integration with other management models, whereas the schema provides the actual model descriptions.
On IBM® i
7.1,
CIM is a feature of the IBM Universal
Manageability Enablement for i licensed
program (5770-UME). It includes the following functions:
- Providers instrumentation for server resources on the system. The providers, which are based on a subset of the standardized CIM classes, gather data on a system.
- Common Information Model Object Manager (CIMOM), a central component of the WBEM server that is responsible for the communication between clients and providers. CIMOM also provides several management functions, including security, and a set of commands that provide configuration and management functions to administrators.
- A schema that defines an information model for representing systems management functions.
- An implementation of the standardized formats for communication between clients and CIMOM, called CIM in XML, V2.1 and CIM operations over HTTP, V1.1. For more information about these standards, see the WBEM Web site.
CIM on IBM i 7.1 environment and dependence considerations
- CIM Server runs as a single TCP/IP server job in the QSYSWRK subsystem. There is only one instance of CIM Server. CIM Server itself is multi-threaded (using pthread library). The providers run in separate jobs (Out of process support required). Unlike 5722-UME, 5770-UME CIM server is configured as an auto-start service when doing scratch install of IBM i 7.1. IBM i System Director Navigator can be used to enable/disable the auto-start with TCP/IP feature.
- CIM Server enables the SSL connections by default. The CIM server checks for its private key and certificate during startup, and if either of those files does not exist, will create its private key and a self-signed 365 day certificate.
- CIM server depends on OpenSSL command to generate the certificates. 5733SC1 (OpenSSL) and 5770SS1 Option 33 (PASE) are the pre-request licensed programs of 5770-UME. The start-up code of CIM server checks the existence of these dependency licensed programs and give an error message if they are not there.
The IBM i
7.1 operating system
supports only the IBM Universal
Manageability Enablement for i licensed
program (5770-UME). The 5770–UME licensed program is also supported
on IBM i 6.1
- What's new for IBM i 7.1
Read about new or significantly changed information for the Common Information Model topic collection. - PDF file for Common Information Model
You can view and print a PDF file of this information. - CIM upgrade considerations
The IBM i 7.1 operating system supports only the IBM Universal Manageability Enablement for i licensed program (5770–UME). After you upgrade the licensed program from 5722–UME to 5770–UME, or after you upgrade from the V5R4 system-based CIM function to the 5770–UME licensed program, you must start the CIM server before you configure the Common Information Model Object Manager (CIMOM). The CIM server starts a repository and configuration migration process. - Preparing to use CIMOM
When you install the IBM i operating system, the IBM Universal Manageability Enablement for i is installed on the system by default. The CIM Server will migrate the repository and configuration file from an early version, if an earlier version exists. 5770-UME CIM server is configured as an auto-start service when doing a scratch installation of IBM i 7.1 . When the CIM server starts up, the configuration in the migrated configuration file will be loaded. - CIMOM security
You have several options to ensure that the CIM server is secure on the IBM i operating system. In the Common Information Model Object Manager (CIMOM), two types of security checks are available: authentication and authorization. - Backup and recovery considerations for CIMOM
It is important to schedule backups of the repository directories and files. If the repository is moved, is lost, or becomes corrupted, restore the files that you have backed up. - Restoring corrupted files
Use this information if the backup copy of your CIM repository files are corrupted. - CIMOM command-line utilities
You can use a set of command-line utilities to control or change the CIMOM environment. These command-line utilities include cimmof, cimconfig, cimprovider, cimtrust, cimcrl, cimsub, and cimcli. - Dependency Considerations
Here are the dependency considerations for Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) and Service Location Protocol (SLP) supports. - Reference information for CIM
The Common Information Model (CIM) standard provides the ability to develop management application that work with the systems management data that is made available by the CIM providers and included with the operating system. - Troubleshooting the CIM server
Use this information if the CIM server does not start or if the CIM server starts, but does not run as expected. - Related information for Common Information Model
Web sites and other information center topic collections contain information that relates to the Common Information Model topic collection. You can view or print any of the PDF files.
