Re: Why get a respin? Was: IBM i 7.1 Technology Refresh 5 offers performance, usability, and integration enhancements -- MIDRANGE-L

Rob,

That part of the BRMS report is at best, a good guess about the restart capabilities of the system it _/came/_ from. Any changes to hardware or a remote site recovery etc, and all those pronouncements in the BRMS report are wasted paper. I have yet to see a successful recovery without a detailed plan for the LIC/OS installation for that customer. This includes media planning, and the steps needed to get the hardware to a point where BRMS can successfully take over. That's when you can load QUSRBRM from your last save action.

There are quite a few folks watching this list that can recover a brain dead machine without the proper documentation but most of us have done it 100s of times over the years.

Truthfully, there is almost no way the authors of BRMS can anticipate the initial load of the LIC, configuration of the DASD, and load of the OS in all but the most generic cases. None of this should be taken as a slam on BRMS, I use it myself and most of my customers use it. It's a great tool, but it does have limitations in that it cannot be expected to know things that cannot be known. Configuration of brain dead hardware is one of them.

Jim Oberholtzer
Chief Technical Architect
Agile Technology Architects

On 10/10/2012 10:31 AM, rob@xxxxxxxxx wrote:

Read your BRMS recovery report. Available with
STRRCYBRM ACTION(*REPORT)
It should tell you whether or not your current hardware supports booting
from tape. Of course, that's "current hardware" and not what you may get
if your current hardware burns up and you get replacement hardware.
Well, actually it doesn't tell you. Read the detail in "STEP 001 :
Recover Licensed Internal Code" of the QP1ARCY printout from that command.
Part of it may say:
An alternate installation device must be configured using Dedicated
Service Tools (DST) when the device is connected to a bus other than
the system bus, or the device is attached using a fiber channel.
The Licensed Internal Code distribution media will be required in
addition to the *SAVSYS saved item to recover the system.

Our tape drives are fiber attached, via a SAN.

Rob Berendt
-- IBM Certified System Administrator - IBM i 6.1 Group Dekko Dept 1600 Mail to: 2505 Dekko Drive Garrett, IN 46738 Ship to: Dock 108 6928N 400E Kendallville, IN 46755 http://www.dekko.com From: Jack Kingsley <iseriesflorida@xxxxxxxxx> To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>, Date: 10/10/2012 11:05 AM Subject: Re: IBM i 7.1 Technology Refresh 5 offers performance, usability, and integration enhancements Sent by: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx Just asking, how much change does this amount to if your using BRMS with all of this. On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 11:04 AM, Jack Kingsley <iseriesflorida@xxxxxxxxx>wrote:
> ok.
>
>
> On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 11:03 AM, Jack Kingsley

<iseriesflorida@xxxxxxxxx>wrote:

>

>> This is where I was going with the question.
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 10:59 AM,<rob@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>

>>> Jim's right. TR's aren't like V5R4M5 or 6.1.1 where you had to follow
>>> the
>>> infocenter section "Replacing Licensed Internal Code and IBM i of the
>>> same
>>> version and release". Granted, you DO really have to read their
>>> instructions as some of them may throw in an extra IPL or something.
>>>
>>> If you got a nice BP I would recommend getting the respin if for no

other

>>> reason than to keep it on a shelf in case:
>>> - you decide to spin up a new lpar. This would have the new TR on it.
>>> - in a DR situation you need to boot from disc. Be a bear to have a
>>> brand
>>> spanking new box only to find out your respin is too old to boot that

new

>>> box.
>>>
>>>
>>> Rob Berendt
>>> --
>>> IBM Certified System Administrator - IBM i 6.1
>>> Group Dekko
>>> Dept 1600
>>> Mail to: 2505 Dekko Drive
>>> Garrett, IN 46738
>>> Ship to: Dock 108
>>> 6928N 400E
>>> Kendallville, IN 46755
>>> http://www.dekko.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> From: Jim Oberholtzer<midrangel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>> To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion

<midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>,

>>> Date: 10/10/2012 10:51 AM
>>> Subject: Re: IBM i 7.1 Technology Refresh 5 offers performance,
>>> usability, and integration enhancements
>>> Sent by:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> No. The TRs now take the place of the re-spin of the BASE DVD. You

can

>>> certainly download one if you need it they still build them, but
>>> applying the TR group is sufficient to keep the system up to date.
>>>
>>> Jim Oberholtzer
>>> Chief Technical Architect
>>> Agile Technology Architects
>>>
>>>
>>> On 10/10/2012 9:45 AM, Jack Kingsley wrote:

>>> > When you put on this new TR5 like for TR4, don't you need a new RSE

>>> DVD??

>>> >
>>> > On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 10:43 AM, Jim Oberholtzer<
>>> > midrangel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>> >

>>> >> > TR 5 has not gone to GA yet. Expected date is out a week, maybe

>>> two.

>>> >> > One of the PTFs normally associated with TRs MF99005 is out but

>>> that
>>> is

>>> >> > a prereq for other PTFs that are being built now.
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Jim Oberholtzer
>>> >> > Chief Technical Architect
>>> >> > Agile Technology Architects
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > On 10/10/2012 9:34 AM,Tommy.Holden@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

>>> >>> > > Anyone been able to download TR5 yet? TR4 is still the only

>>> thing

>>> >> > showing

>>> >>> > > on fix central so perhaps there's somewhere else on IBM's

>>> monolithic

>>> >> > maze?

>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > Thanks,
>>> >>> > > Tommy Holden
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > From:rob@xxxxxxxxx
>>> >>> > > To:midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx,
>>> >>> > > Date: 10/04/2012 07:31 AM
>>> >>> > > Subject: IBM i 7.1 Technology Refresh 5 offers

>>> performance,

>>> >>> > > usability, and integration enhancements
>>> >>> > > Sentby:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > IBM announcement
>>> >>> > > IBM i 7.1 Technology Refresh 5 offers performance,

usability,

>>> and

>>> >>> > > integration enhancements
>>> >>> > >

>>> >> >

>>>
>>>
http://www-01.ibm.com/common/ssi/cgi-bin/ssialias?subtype=ca&infotype=an&appname=iSource&supplier=897&letternum=ENUS212-379#h2-availx

>>>

>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > Some stuff coming in TR5 (available October 9)
>>> >>> > > Some stuff in a new HTTP group (available December 15)
>>> >>> > > Some stuff in a new DB2 group PTF (planned November 9)
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > Also announced was some new hardware.
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > >
>>> >>> > > Rob Berendt
>>> >>> > > -- IBM Certified System Administrator - IBM i 6.1 Group

Dekko

>>> Dept

>>> >>> > > 1600 Mail to: 2505 Dekko Drive Garrett, IN 46738 Ship to:

Dock

>>> 108

>>> >>> > > 6928N 400E Kendallville, IN 46755http://www.dekko.com
>>> >>> > > --

>>> >> > --

>>> --