Troubleshooting
Problem
PowerVC python alternatives broke after the OS update (yum, RHEL, zypper, or SLES update) performed on PowerVC nodes.
Symptom
After the OS update, some of the PowerVC commands do not work as expected. These PowerVC commands show errors and are missing modules.
Cause
The /usr/bin/python and /usr/bin/python3 files come from the distro rpms, which gets updated with OS upgrade.
Resolving The Problem
Set the alternatives again to PowerVC python version by using the following commands
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python3 python3 /usr/bin/<current-powervc-python-version> 1
alternatives --set python3 /usr/bin/<current-powervc-python-version>
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python python /usr/bin/<current-powervc-python-version> 1
alternatives --set python /usr/bin/<current-powervc-python-version>
Example For PowerVC version 2.2.x.x
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python3 python3 /usr/bin/python3.9 1
alternatives --set python3 /usr/bin/python3.9
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python python /usr/bin/python3.9 1
alternatives --set python /usr/bin/python3.9
Example for PowerVC version 2.3.x
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python3 python3 /usr/bin/python3.11 1
alternatives --set python3 /usr/bin/python3.11
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python python /usr/bin/python3.11 1
alternatives --set python /usr/bin/python3.11
Document Location
Worldwide
[{"Type":"MASTER","Line of Business":{"code":"LOB68","label":"Power HW"},"Business Unit":{"code":"BU070","label":"IBM Infrastructure"},"Product":{"code":"SSVSPA","label":"IBM PowerVC for Private Cloud"},"ARM Category":[{"code":"a8m50000000L0jDAAS","label":"PowerVC"}],"ARM Case Number":"","Platform":[{"code":"PF025","label":"Platform Independent"}],"Version":"1.2.0;1.4.0;1.4.4;2.0.0;2.0.1;2.0.2;2.0.3;2.1.0;2.1.1;2.2.0;2.2.1;2.3.0;2.3.1"}]
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Document Information
Modified date:
23 July 2025
UID
ibm17240245