Advanced fix installation: Building virtual image fix packages

To create your own virtual image for fix packages that you want to install at a later time, follow these procedures.

Notes:
  1. You cannot install PTFs from an image catalog with Management Central, but you can use the copy from media function to copy PTFs into save files from an image catalog associated with a virtual optical device.
  2. Your user profile must have *ALLOBJ and *SECADM authority to use the image catalog commands.
  3. If you do not have a virtual optical device, you must create one. To create one, see Installing IBM i fixes from an image catalog.
  4. If you build a custom fix package and save it to virtual optical media, you cannot span virtual volumes. Your custom fix package must fit on one volume.

To create your own virtual image in an image catalog, do the following steps:

  1. Create an image catalog

    Create an image catalog for the set of PTFs that you want to install. The Create Image Catalog (CRTIMGCLG) command associates an image catalog with a target directory where the pre-loaded images are loaded.

    CRTIMGCLG IMGCLG(ptfcatalog) DIR('/MYCATALOGDIRECTORY') 
  CRTDIR(*YES) TEXT(text-description)
    Note: A directory can be associated with only one image catalog.
  2. Add an image catalog entry

    Add an image catalog entry to create a new image file in the image catalog.

    ADDIMGCLGE IMGCLG(ptfcatalog) FROMFILE(*NEW) TOFILE(NEWIMAGEFILE)
 IMGSIZ(xxxxx)  TEXT(text-description)

    The size of the image needs be large enough to contain the size of the fixes that you want to distribute.

  3. Load the image catalog

    This step associates the virtual optical device to the image catalog. Only one image catalog can be associated with a specific virtual optical device. Type the following command to load the image catalog:

    LODIMGCLG IMGCLG(ptfcatalog) DEV(OPTVRT01) OPTION(*LOAD)
  4. Initialize the virtual image 
    INZOPT NEWVOL(MYVOLUMEID) DEV(OPTVRT01) CHECK(*NO)
  TEXT(MYTEXTDESCRIPTION)

    The system initializes the virtual image.

  5. Copy PTFs to virtual media

    Copy any PTFs and PTF groups to virtual optical device. You cannot span virtual optical volumes; all PTFs and PTF groups must fit on a single volume. If you exceed the capacity of the volume, either create a new volume or initialize the volume to a larger size.

    Use the Copy PTF Groups (CPYPTFGRP) command to copy the PTF groups to the media. You can optionally specify CPYPTF(*YES) on the command to copy the PTFs in the group.

    CPYPTFGRP PTFGRP(xxxxxxx) FROMDEV(*SERVICE) 
  TODEV(OPTVRT01) CPYPTF(*YES)

    Use the Copy PTF (CPYPTF) command to copy PTFs to the media. Repeat the command for each product that you have.

    CPYPTF LICPGM(xxxxxxx) FROMDEV(*SERVICE)
 TODEV(OPTVRT01) SELECT(xxxxxxx)