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Abstract
This document introduces IBM Technology Zone Certified Base Images, explaining what certification means, who can use certified environments, and how to identify and select the right image for different engagement types. It highlights TechZone content quality standards, access models, and hybrid infrastructure coverage to help users quickly find trusted, supported environments for demos, pilots, education, workshops, and environment content creation efforts.
Content
Overview
IBM Technology Zone Certified Base Images are validated environments that provide a reliable starting point for deploying IBM technology once provisioned. These images are marked with the TechZone Certified tag, which indicates they meet defined TechZone content standards for quality, security, consistency, and operational readiness.
Certified environments have been tested, secured, fully supported by the TechZone team, and regularly maintained to ensure long‑term reliability and stability. The Certified tag helps users quickly identify offerings that align with TechZone’s baseline specifications and represent trusted, supported starting points—whether you are selecting a base image or an environment with products pre‑installed.
Who Can Use Certified Base Images?
TechZone Certified Base Images are available today to the following audiences through IBM Technology Zone:
- IBM Go‑to‑Market teams supporting client engagements
- Technical Sales, Client Engineering, Customer Success, Technology Enablement, Expert Labs,
- IBM Business Partners registered through Partner Plus
- IBM Champions (clients and partners), with access to a select set of Certified environments
These users can request, reserve, and manage Certified Base Images within Technology Zone and may share access with clients so they can experience IBM technology firsthand in a guided environment.
Certified Base Images are especially useful when you need a known‑good, supported starting point without spending time on initial environment setup—such as for demos, briefings, pilots, workshops, and proofs of concept.
Important note on customer access:
Customers cannot directly request Certified Base Images or other Technology Zone content themselves. However, TechZone users can provision and share access to environments on a customer’s behalf, enabling customers to participate and interact with the environment.
How to Identify TechZone Certified Base Images
TechZone Content Quality Standards
Certified
Tag on asset card: Certified
Certified content represents the highest quality standard in Technology Zone and is the recommended starting point when selecting base images or environments.
TechZone Certified environments:
- Meet defined TechZone quality, security, and configuration standards
- Are tested and secured
- Are actively maintained and fully supported by the TechZone team
- Are regularly updated to ensure long‑term reliability and stability
Certified offerings are ideal for:
- Building new or custom content
- Client demonstrations and pilots
- Workshops and enablement activities (education)
- Testing environment setup or configuration
When browsing Technology Zone, users should look for the Certified tag on the asset card to quickly identify environments that align with TechZone standards and support expectations.
Where to Start
To explore available TechZone Certified Base Images, start with the Certified Base Images collection, which serves as the primary entry point for validated, supported environments:
To showcase IBM’s true hybrid cloud capabilities, IBM Technology Zone provides a broad set of Certified Base Images that enable IBM software to be deployed consistently across multiple cloud providers and on‑premises platforms.
Certified Base Images are available across a wide range of infrastructure options, including:
- IBM Cloud
- OpenShift Virtualization (OCPv)
- IBM Power
- IBM Z
- VMWare
- Azure
- Amazon
- Storage
- On-Prem x86
Choosing the Right Certified Base Image or Environment
IBM Technology Zone offers a wide range of Certified Base Images and environments to support different IBM technologies, infrastructure options, and engagement types. Selecting the right option starts by understanding your use case, required services or products, and how the environment will be used—not just where it is hosted.
1.Start with Your Purpose
Consider what you are trying to accomplish:
Client demos or pilot projects (proof of concepts)
Education or learning
Workshops or hands‑on labs
Testing or creating a new environment
Your purpose will guide whether you need a flexible foundation or an environment that is pre‑configured and ready to showcase.
2. Base vs. Pre‑Configured Environments
Technology Zone offers two primary environment types:
- Base environments
Clean, flexible starting points designed for installing software, building new content, or testing custom configurations. (e.g. Base VMs, Base OpenShift) - Pre‑configured environments
Environments with IBM products or services to be pre-installed, aligned to common demo, pilot, workshop, and solution scenarios.
If you want full control or plan to install and configure products yourself, choose a base environment. If speed, consistency, or ease of setup matters, a pre‑configured environment may be the better choice which are represented outside the the Base OpenShift and Base VMs paths (Cloud Paks, Data & AI, Power & Z, Cloud Accounts, or Content Starters).
3. Availability and Access Model
Environments may be available in different ways:
- On‑demand environments can be requested directly (these requests start provisioning immediately)
- Approval‑based environments require review before deployment and are typically tied to specific use cases, premium options, or workshop engagements
Approval‑based environments are not instant and may require additional information or details on the request—such as customer context, sales opportunity, or other business justification information—to ensure the environment is aligned to its intended use.
4. Workshops and Group Engagements
For workshops, labs, or other group engagements, some environments are enabled for use on a tool called Workshop Manager, which enables multiple environments to be provisioned and managed together. Support for Workshop Manager depends on the environment’s configuration and intended use.
5. What to Look for When Browsing
Each environment includes clear indicators to help guide your selection:
- Whether the environment is base, pre‑configured, or designed for a specific engagement type
- Whether a specific infrastructure type is required to support the intended engagement
- Whether approval is required
- Whether Workshop Manager is supported
These indicators help you quickly understand readiness, availability, and usage expectations, making it easier to choose the right environment for your scenario.
Key Reminder: Guidance and availability may vary depending on the specific IBM services, products, and infrastructure options where they can be deployed. Always align your selection with both your technical requirements and your intended use case.
In addition to the Certified tag, Technology Zone environments may display additional tags that provide important context about an environment’s readiness, behavior, and provisioning characteristics. These tags help users better understand what to expect and select the most appropriate environment for their needs.
When reviewing TechZone Certified Images, users should always check all tags displayed on the asset card before reserving or deploying an environment.
Beta
Tag on asset card: Beta
Environments marked with the Beta tag are newly created or recently updated and are still in a feedback and validation phase. These environments may not yet meet the full maturity expectations of standard Certified content.
Beta environments are intended for evaluation and early testing and may evolve based on user feedback.
Usage guidance:
- Beta environments should be fully tested before being used as a starting point for new environments or critical work.
- They are not recommended for production‑like, time‑sensitive, or long‑running activities.
- Changes may occur during the Beta period based on feedback.
Providing feedback or contributing:
- Feedback for Beta environments can be submitted through the Technology Zone Aha Ideas Portal.
Pre‑warmed
Tag on asset card: Pre-warmed
Environments marked with the Pre‑warmed tag are pre‑provisioned and kept ready in TechZone Warming Pools to allow faster access for users. These environments are designed to significantly reduce the time required to reserve and provision an environment.
Pre‑warmed environments:
- Are typically available instantly or much faster than standard provisioning.
- Are provisioned and maintained in advance to support high‑demand scenarios.
- Help improve the overall user experience by minimizing wait times.
Important considerations:
- In periods of high demand, warming pools may temporarily run out of available environments.
- When this occurs, reservations may take the standard amount of time to provision.
Getting Started
To get started:
- Browse the available Certified Base Images in TechZone
- Review the image details on each card and the relevant documentation
- Select the image that best matches your use case
- Request the image to start the provisioning process to get access to start working with the environment
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Document Information
Modified date:
08 April 2026
UID
ibm17268083