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IBM System x Update

Tools Transition

October 10, 2011

IBM System x Update Tools Transition

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................................... 1

Overview ................................................................................................................................................................ 3

What Is changing? .............................................................................................................................................. 3

Why is it changing? ............................................................................................................................................. 3

When will the change occur? .............................................................................................................................. 4

What systems will be affected?........................................................................................................................... 4

Is BladeCenter affected? ..................................................................................................................................... 4

What is the replacement for updating with individual online updates (IFLASH packages)? ................................... 4

What is the replacement for updating through the IMM (out of band)? .............................................................. 4

Overview of the Tools ............................................................................................................................................. 5

What is UXSPI? ................................................................................................................................................... 5

What is BoMC? ................................................................................................................................................... 5

What is Systems Director update manager? ........................................................................................................ 6

Using UXSPI and BoMC ........................................................................................................................................... 7

Using UXSPI ........................................................................................................................................................ 7

Updating a local machine from a local directory .............................................................................................. 7

Updating a local machine from the IBM Web site using the UXSPI GUI ............................................................ 8

Updating a Remote system from a local folder ................................................................................................ 9

Updating only the firmware on a system ....................................................................................................... 10

Creating a repository of updates ................................................................................................................... 10

Using BoMC ...................................................................................................................................................... 12

Creating bootable media ............................................................................................................................... 12

Migrating tools and cli parameters ....................................................................................................................... 16

Overview .......................................................................................................................................................... 16

Migrating from IMM CLI to UXSPI ..................................................................................................................... 16


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Mapping of CLI options ................................................................................................................................. 16

Migrating from IMM CLI to BoMC ..................................................................................................................... 17

Mapping of CLI options ................................................................................................................................. 17

Migrating from individual online update packages to UXSPI .............................................................................. 17

Mapping of executable update CLI parameters to UXSPI ............................................................................... 17

References ........................................................................................................................................................... 19


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OVERVIEW

IBM is changing the supported methods to deploy firmware updates to new IBM System x and BladeCenter servers

starting in 2011. This document details the changes being made, the tools used for firmware updates, and how to

transition to a different firmware update method if the method currently in use will no longer be supported.

WHAT IS CHANGING?

New System x systems starting in 2011 will require firmware updates be performed with one of the following tools:

IBM ToolsCenter UpdateXpress System Pack Installer (UXSPI), IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media Creator (BoMC), or

Systems Director Update Manager. Updating by running individual flash packages (e.g. iFlash packages) will not be

supported. Updating via the IMM’s CLI or SNMP will also not be supported. Updating via the IMM web interface

will be supported only for emergency recovery purposes.

In addition, the UEFI, IMM, and DSA Preboot firmware are being packaged in a new OS-agnostic file format (UXZ

file). By packaging the firmware updates as OS-Agnostic UXZ files, it allows the same version of the firmware

update to be installed on any operating system. This reduces the space and bandwidth needed to store and

retrieve the firmware files.

WHY IS IT CHANGING?

Updating firmware can be a complex process requiring knowledge of ordering dependencies between the

firmware of different components, resetting IMM at the proper time, time delays between different updates,

multi-node considerations, not to mention acquiring the correct firmware in the first place. UXSPI, BoMC, and

Update Manager offer a number of features that simplify and manage the process of firmware and driver updates

on modern servers:

Feature Benefit

Download firmware and drivers automatically from

ibm.com Makes it easy to ensure a matched set of firmware

and drivers is downloaded

Handle prereq and coreq information for the updates

Ensures a matched set of firmware and drivers is installed

Ensures firmware and drivers are installed in the correct sequence

Simplifies scripted deployment of updates

Ability to update all of the firmware and drivers on a

system

Ensures a matched set of firmware and drivers is installed

Ensures firmware and drivers are installed in the correct sequence

Simplifies scripted deployment of updates

All firmware flashing code is embedded in the Tools Updates to the flashing software don’t result in a new firmware package being posted to ibm.com

Addresses device-specific flashing requirements Simplifies scripted deployment of updates


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For these reasons, the IBM System x Firmware Update Best Practices document recommends using these tools to

update systems to enable a most consistent and robust update process. With the introduction of the 2011

systems, the documented best practices will become the primary way to update the system.

WHEN WILL THE CHANGE OCCUR?

In 2011, the firmware updates for UEFI, IMM, and DSA Preboot will be transitioned to the new update methods.

These updates are tied to the specific hardware, and they are therefore being transitioned with the release of the

new hardware in 2011.

In 2012, the remaining firmware updates (e.g. NIC, RAID, Fibre Channel, etc.) will be transitioned to the new

update methods. Since these updates are for controllers and adapters that are common between new 2011

systems and pre-2011 systems, the transition for these updates requires more time. Pre-2011 systems will

continue to support the old format for the updates, where new systems from 2011 forward will support the new

format for the updates.

WHAT SYSTEMS WILL BE AFFECTED?

This affects all new systems being shipped in 2011 that include an IMM. Older systems that shipped before 2011

will not be affected and refreshes to older systems will not be affected.

IS BLADECENTER AFFECTED?

Yes. The individual online updates (IFLASH packages) for new blades will be released in OS-agnostic packaging

format, and thus won’t be able to be executed directly. See the section on Migrating from individual online update

packages to UXSPI for information on how to update scripts that call the individual online packages.

No flash methods will be disabled or removed on the AMM for the new blades, so UEFI and IMM will be able to be

updated via the AMM CLI, SNMP, and web interface.

WHAT IS THE REPLACEMENT FOR UPDATING WITH INDIVIDUAL ONLINE UPDATES (IFLASH

PACKAGES)?

The replacement is to use UXSPI in command line mode to install updates.

WHAT IS THE REPLACEMENT FOR UPDATING THROUGH THE IMM (OUT OF BAND)?

The replacement is to use UXSPI or BoMC in command line mode to install firmware updates.

http://www-947.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=MIGR-5082923


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OVERVIEW OF THE TOOLS

There are three supported tools available to perform firmware updates: IBM ToolsCenter UpdateXpress System

Pack Installer (UXSPI), IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media Creator (BoMC), and IBM Systems Director Update

Manager. These tools are able to:

Display an inventory of installed firmware and drivers

Download firmware, drivers, and UXSPs from ibm.com

Update all of the firmware and drivers in your system, including RAID, HDD, NIC, and Fibre Channel devices

Use the installed version inventory to update only the firmware and drivers that are down level

Apply updates in the recommended and tested sequence, taking into account pre-requirements and co-requirements

Create a bootable CD/DVD/USB key/PXE image to perform firmware updates (BoMC)

WHAT IS UXSPI?

IBM ToolsCenter UpdateXpress System Pack Installer (UXSPI) can help reduce the cost of computing by providing

an effective and simple way to update device drivers, server firmware, and firmware of supported options

contained within System x and BladeCenter products. UXSPI can apply individual updates to the system as well as

UpdateXpress System Packs which are a group of drivers and firmware updates tested as a bundle to verify that

they work together without issues.

UXSPI provides both a GUI interface and a command line (CLI) interface to allow for both attended, easily

customized updates and for scripted updates. It can acquire updates from a local path, a network shared folder, or

directly from ibm.com. After acquiring the updates, UXSPI will use the metadata in each update’s associated XML

file to apply the updates in unattended mode, in the correct order, with any necessary delays included.

UXSPI can apply acquired updates to the local system using the GUI or CLI interface. In addition, using the CLI

interface UXSPI can apply updates to a system over a network.

More information, including detailed command line parameters, for UXSPI can be found in the UXSPI User’s Guide.

A short overview video is available on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpwYXeE6jDE.

WHAT IS BOMC?

The IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media Creator (BoMC) provides firmware updating capabilities on a bootable media

such as a CD, DVD, USB key, or PXE files for a network boot. It leverages UXSPI to perform the update by bundling

the UXSPI utility onto the bootable media. Since BoMC creates bootable media that runs independent of any OS

installed on a system, it is able to update firmware on any server regardless of the installed operating system.

Updates supporting multiple systems can be contained on a single bootable media image.

http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=MIGR-5085892

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpwYXeE6jDE


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BoMC can also create media to perform actions other than firmware updates. BoMC can create bootable media

that will run pre-boot diagnostics using the IBM ToolsCenter DSA Preboot tool. BoMC can also create bootable

media that will configure and install supported Microsoft Windows operating systems using the IBM ServerGuide

tool.

More information on BoMC can be found in the Bootable Media Creator Installation and User’s Guide. A short

overview video is available on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZpNQcBbMAQ.

WHAT IS SYSTEMS DIRECTOR UPDATE MANAGER?

IBM® Systems Director provides a central point of control for aggregating and managing systems. It can be

installed on one or more systems, called management servers, and systems can connect to the IBM Systems

Director Web interface through a Web browser.

IBM Systems Director Update Manager is a capability within IBM Systems Director that acquires, manages, and

installs updates through IBM Systems Director.

More information on IBM Systems Director can be found at http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/software/director/


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZpNQcBbMAQ

http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/software/director/


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USING UXSPI AND BOMC

This section provides general examples of how to use UXSPI and BoMC. For detailed information on the Tools,

please see the UXSPI User’s Guide and the BoMC User’s Guide.

USING UXSPI

This section documents only specific UXSPI use cases. UXSPI has many additional parameters and use cases that

are not documented here, but can be found in the UXSPI User’s Guide.

UPDATING A LOCAL MACHINE FROM A LOCAL DIRECTORY

UXSPI can update a local machine with either UXSPs or individual updates acquired from a local directory.

ASSUMPTIONS AND PREREQUISITES

1. The user is running the UpdateXpress System Pack Installer on the local system to be updated.

2. The system must be running a supported operating system.

SCENARIO TASKS USING THE UXSPI GUI

1. Launch the UpdateXpress System Pack Installer GUI by double-clicking uxspi440.exe.

2. The initial panel describes the UpdateXpress System Pack Installer. Click Next.

Tip: The machine type and operating system for the system running the UpdateXpress System Pack

Installer is displayed near the top of the panel. The UpdateXpress System Pack Installer version is also

displayed.

3. On the Update Task panel, select Update the local machine. Click Next.

4. On the Update Type panel, select the type of updates you would like to acquire. Possible updates are:

UpdateXpress System Packs (UXSPs)

Individual updates

Click Next.

5. On the Updates Location panel, select Check in a local directory. Browse for different directory if desired.

Click Next.

6. The installer begins acquiring updates.

Note: The progress bar indicates that the installer is processing, but does not depict a percentage of

progress completed.

7. On the Update Recommendation panel, make any desired changes and then click Next.





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8. If operating system independent ESW updates are detected, the Update Options panel opens. Specify any

necessary options and click Next. If no options are specified the operating system independent ESW

updates will be applied using the default settings.

9. The Update Execution panel displays while the updates are installed to your local system.

10. The Complete panel displays when the updated has completed successfully. Click Finish.

SCENARIO TASKS USING THE UXSPI CLI

This example illustrates running UXSPI from a command line to update the local system with all of the latest

updates contained in a folder, in this case the C:\updates folder, in unattended mode.

uxspi440.exe update --local=C:\updates –u

Parameter Description

update Tells UXSPI to install and update drivers and firmware on a system.

--local Specifies the location of the updates on the current system, in this case C:\updates.

-u Specifies to perform an unattended installation of the updates.

UPDATING A LOCAL MACHINE FROM THE IBM WEB SITE USING THE UXSPI GUI

UXSPI can update a local machine with either UXSP(s) or individual updates acquired from an IBM Web site.

ASSUMPTIONS AND PREREQUISITES

1. The user is running the UXSPI on the local system to be updated.

2. The system must be running a supported operating system.

SCENARIO TASKS



Tip: The machine type and operating system for the system running the UpdateXpress System Pack

Installer is displayed near the top of the panel. The UpdateXpress System Pack Installer version is also

displayed.

3. On the Update Task panel, select Update the local machine. Click Next.

4. On the Update Type panel, select the type of updates you would like to acquire. Possible updates are:


Individual updates

Click Next.

5. On the Updates Location panel, select IBM web site. Click Next.

6. On the Target Directory panel, specify the directory to which you want to download the updates or accept

the default location. Click Next.


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7. On the HTTP Proxy Setting panel, specify the proxy information if required. Click Next.

8. If you selected to acquire individual updates, the Update Selection panel displays. Select the updates you

want and then click Next.

9. The installer begins acquiring updates.

Note: The progress bar indicates that the installer is processing, but does not depict a percentage of

progress completed.

10. On the Update Recommendation panel, make any desired changes and then click Next.

11. If operating system independent ESW updates are detected, the Update Options panel opens. Specify any

necessary options and click Next. If no options are specified the operating system independent ESW

updates will be applied using the default settings.

12. The Update Execution panel displays while the updates are installed to your local system.

13. The Complete panel displays when the updated has completed successfully. Click Finish.

UPDATING A REMOTE SYSTEM FROM A LOCAL FOLDER

You can use the UXSPI CLI to run the compare and update commands on a remote server. The update command is

performed in unattended mode. You can use the compare command to view what updates will be applied to the

remote system. Remote command execution is logged on the target system. Remote functionality is only

supported when the source and target systems are the same operating system type, such as Windows-to-Windows

or Linux-to-Linux.

All command line options are supported by remote execution. If you wish to only execute a subset of updates you

can use the --include and --exclude command line options. Also, --drivers and --firmware command line options

can be used to specify a category of updates.

USAGE EXAMPLES

This example illustrates running UXSPI from a command line to compare the updates in the local folder x3800dir

with the currently installed version of the firmware and drivers on a remote system.

uxspi440.exe compare --local=x3800dir --remote=10.2.33.44 --

remoteuser=administrator --remote-password=AdminPwd


compare Tells UXSPI to perform a version comparison.

--local Specifies the location of the updates on the current system, in this case C:\updates.

--remote

Designates the IP address of the system to be updated, in this case the IP address is 10.2.33.44. Only a single IP address can be specified. If the desire is to perform the action for multiple systems, UXSPI may be scripted in a loop and launched multiple times, once for each remote system.

--remote-user Specifies the user name to use when authenticating with the remote system’s operating system to perform the updates.

--remote-password Specifies the password to use when authenticating with the remote system’s operating system using user name --remote-user.


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This example illustrates running UXSPI from a command line to update a remote system.

uxspi440.exe update --local=C:\updates --remote=10.2.33.44 --remote-

user=administrator --remote-password=AdminPwd


update Tells UXSPI to install and update drivers and firmware on a system.

NOTES AND SUGGESTIONS

The log file is located on the remote target system in:

C:\IBM_Support\UXSPI_systemname_machinetype_timestamp.log (Windows)

or

/var/log/IBM_Support/systemname_machinetype_timestamp.log (Linux).

systemname is the dns name of the system, machinetype is the 4-digit Machine Type, and timestamp is the time

stamp of when the tool was called. The Linux syslog or Windows event log, which contain only high-level,

predefined strings, register the <program> executions on the remote system.

Also note that using the source system as the target system is not supported. Only one instance of the program is

allowed per server. Attempting to point the <program> to 127.0.0.1 is therefore not a valid scenario.

UPDATING ONLY THE FIRMWARE ON A SYSTEM

Additional UXSPI command line options can be used to modify the behavior of the update process. For example,

one option (-F) can be used to make UXSPI only update firmware. This parameter could be combined with the

previous examples as follows.

To update only the firmware on a local system:

uxspi440.exe update --local=C:\updates –u -F

To update only the firmware on a remote system:

uxspi440.exe update --local=C:\updates --remote=10.2.33.44 --remote-

user=administrator --remote-password=AdminPwd -F

CREATING A REPOSITORY OF UPDATES

UXSPI can create a repository of either UXSP(s) or individual updates acquired from the IBM web site.

SCENARIO TASKS USING THE UXSPI GUI


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Tip: The machine type and operating system for the system running the UXSPI is displayed near the top of

the panel. The UpdateXpress System Pack Installer version is also displayed.

3. On the Update Task panel, select Create a repository of updates, and then click Next.

4. On the Update Type panel, select the type of updates you would like to acquire, and then click Next.

Possible updates are:


Individual updates

5. On the Machine Types panel, check the machine types for which you want to acquire updates, and then

click Next.

Tips:

You can select all the listed machine types by checking the top checkbox in the header.

You can add and remove machine types from the list using the Add and Remove buttons. To add

a machine type, click Add and then specify the machine type. To remove a machine type, first

check the machine type in the list and then click Remove.

6. On the Operating Systems panel, select the operating systems for which you would like to acquire

updates.

Tip: If you selected to acquire individual updates, you have the option to choose OS independent update.

Select OS independent update for updates that do not run from a particular operating system, such as

the UEFI, IMM, and DSA Preboot firmware.

7. On the Target Directory panel, specify the directory to which you want to download the updates or accept


8. On the HTTP Proxy Setting panel, specify the proxy information if required, and then click Next.

9. If you selected to acquire individual updates, the Update Selection panel displays. Select the updates you

want, and then click Next.

Note: The progress bar indicates that the installer is acquiring updates, but does not depict a percentage

of progress completed. The Complete panel displays when the has been created successfully.

10. Click Finish.

SCENARIO TASKS USING THE UXSPI CLI

This example illustrates acquiring updates from ibm.com for machine type 7944 and storing the updates in the

folder C:\updates.

uxspi440.exe acquire –m 7944 –-local=C:\updates –os=windows


acquire Tells UXSPI to acquire updates. In this case, since no specific updates are specified, it will acquire all of the updates for machine type 7944 including


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firmware and drivers.

-m Designates which machine type to download updates for, in this case, it is machine type 7944.

--local Designates where to store the downloaded updates on the local system.

--os Specifies which OS to download updates for, in this case Windows.

USING BOMC

This section only documents specific BoMC use cases. BoMC has many additional parameters and use cases that

are not documented here, but can be found in the Bootable Media Creator Installation and User’s Guide.

CREATING BOOTABLE MEDIA

SCENARIO TASKS USING THE GUI

You can create a new bootable image on supported bootable media.

Perform these steps to create bootable media:

1. Launch the UpdateXpress System Pack Installer GUI by double-clicking

ibm_utl_bomc_2.30_windows_i386.exe.

2. From the Welcome to the IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media Creator page, type a description in the

Descriptive name field. The descriptive text displays on the screen when you use the bootable media.

Click Next.

3. From the Media Purpose page, complete these fields and then click Next:

Updates

Select this check box to bundle UpdateXpress System Pack Installer and firmware updates for the targeted

systems on the bootable media.

Note: If you create bootable media on a system that is of the same machine type as the target system or a

system that is in the supported systems list, the machine type is automatically highlighted and selected.

Enable Task AutoRun

Select this check box to automatically start UXSPI when you boot from the media.

4. From the Acquire Location page, complete these fields and then click Next:

Check the IBM Web site

Select this radio button to acquire the latest updates from the IBM Web site before creating the bootable

media.

UpdateXpress System Pack (UXSPs)



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Select this radio button to acquire complete UpdateXpress System Packs. UpdateXpress System

Pack contains an integration-tested bundle of online, firmware updates for each System x and

BladeCenter system. This is the preferred method to obtain updates.

Latest available individual updates

Select this radio button to acquire individual updates.

Look in a local directory

Select this radio button to acquire updates, tools, and boot environment from the local system. Type the

fully qualified path and file name in the given field or click the Browse button to select the file.

5. From the HTTP Proxy page, enter your HTTP proxy information if required and click Next.

6. From the Targeted Systems page, check the machine types that you want the bootable media to support,

and then click Next.

7. On the Target Directory page, specify the directory to which you want to download the updates or accept


8. From the Media Format page, select the type of media you want to create: CD/DVD, USB key, or PXE

image and click Next.

9. On the Unattended Mode Configuration page, complete the following fields and click Next.

Do not use unattended mode

Select this radio button to disable unattended mode.

Use unattended mode

Select this radio button to enable unattended updates.

10. From the Confirm Choices page, review the configuration information you provided for creating the

bootable media and click Next. The Creation Progress page is displayed. IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media

Creator acquires UpdateXpress System Pack updates and then creates the bootable media. A progress bar

indicates that the acquisition and creation are in progress and shows the percentage of progress

completed.

11. When the bootable media is complete, click Next.

12. Click Finish.

CREATING A BOOTABLE CD TO UPDATE FIRMWARE USING THE BOMC CLI

This example illustrates how to create a bootable ISO image named tc.iso for a system with machine type 8843

that includes UXSPI. UXSPI runs automatically when the bootable media boots. The tc.iso file is created in the

workingdir directory.

ibm_utl_bomc_2.20_windows_i386.exe --function=uxspi -m 8843

--iso=tc.iso --local=c:\workingdir --autorun=uxspi


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--function Specifies that this bootable media should include UXSPI on the bootable media, which is utilized by the BoMC tool to perform the firmware updates.

-m Specifies the comma delimited list of machine type(s) the bootable media will be able to update.

--iso

Specifies both that BoMC should produce an ISO image as output, and the name of the ISO image to produce as output. The ISO image filename must end with “.iso”. The ISO image will be created in the location specified with the --local option.

--local

Specifies the location to copy any downloaded updates to and the location to put the output into, in this case the location is C:\workingdir. If any update files already exist in the --local folder they will not be downloaded again.

--autorun Specifies which tool should automatically run when the bootable media boots, in this case UXSPI will run automatically.

After creating the ISO image, it can be burned to a CD or DVD with the CD/DVD burning software of your choice.

CREATING A BOOTABLE USB KEY TO UPDATE FIRMWARE USING THE BOMC CLI

This example illustrates how to create a bootable USB flash drive for a system with machine type 8843 that

includes UXSPI. In this example, the USB flash drive uses the F: drive.

ibm_utl_bomc_2.20_windows_i386.exe --function=uxspi -m 8843 --usbkey=F:

--local=c:\working_dir --autorun=uxspi




--usbkey Specifies both that BoMC should produce output for a USB key, and the path to the USB key to make bootable and put the files on.

--local



CREATING A BOOTABLE PXE IMAGE TO UPDATE FIRMWARE USING THE BOMC CLI

This example illustrates how to create bootable PXE files (including pxelinux.cfg/default, initrd.gz, vmlinux,

pxelinux.0, tcrootfs and tc.zipin) in the c:\workingdir\pxedir directory for a system with machine type 8843 that

includes UXSPI. The updates and files are acquired from the IBM Web site. UXSPI runs automatically when the

bootable media boots.


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ibm_utl_bomc_2.20_windows_i386.exe --function=uxspi -m 8843 --

pxe=pxedir --local=C:\workingdir --tftp-pxe-address=192.168.1.6 --

autorun=uxspi




--pxe Specifies the directory to create the Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) files in relative to the --local directory.

--local


--tftp-pxe-address Specifies the IP address of the TFTP server to use for PXE booting


Note: This example requires you to change the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) IP address of

pxelinux.cfg/default. For more information, see Chapter 4, “Using bootable media,” of the Bootable Media Creator

Installation and User’s Guide.

CREATING A BOOTABLE ISO WITH A SINGLE UPDATE USING THE BOMC CLI

This example illustrates how to create a bootable ISO image named tc.iso for a system with machine type 8843

that includes UXSPI. UXSPI runs automatically when the bootable media boots. The tc.iso file is created in the

workingdir directory. This example is similar to the example described in Creating a bootable CD to update

firmware using the BoMC CLI except that only the update(s) in the --local folder will be contained on the bootable

ISO. Only the differences between the example to create a bootable cd to update firmware and this scenario are

documented here, refer to that section for documentation on the other parameters.

ibm_utl_bomc_2.20_windows_i386.exe --function=uxspi -m 8843

--iso=tc.iso --local=c:\workingdir --autorun=uxspi --no-acquire


--no-acquire

Specifies that BoMC should not attempt to download updates from the IBM web site. The directory specified by the --local option must contain all of the files needed to create the bootable media, including the UpdateXpress System Packs, tools, and boot environment. BoMC will only copy the updates contained in the directory specified by the --local option to the ISO image. To update only a single firmware using this method, remove all other firmware updates from the directory, leaving only the desired firmware updates and the boot files.




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MIGRATING TOOLS AND CLI PARAMETERS

This section covers migration to one of the stand-alone update tools, UXSPI and BoMC, depending on the prior

unattended firmware update method used. The firmware update use cases that are no longer supported and

covered in this section are:

Updating from the IMM command line interface

Updating from the IMM using SNMP

Scripted updating using individual online update packages

In addition, this section details command line interface (CLI) parameters for UXSPI that are equivalent to the

parameters used in the previous firmware installation method. In the tables showing equivalent parameters,

where the parameter is “No equivalent”, a note is included after the table with more information. Where the

parameter is “N/A” it means that the parameter is not applicable or there is no logical need for the parameter.

More details on the UXSPI command line parameters can be found in the UXSPI User’s Guide.

OVERVIEW

This table documents the tool to use when migrating from a use case that will no longer be supported to using

UXSPI or BoMC to perform firmware updates.

Prior use case Use case to migrate to if a ServerProven OS is up and running

Use case to migrate to if a ServerProven OS is not running

IMM CLI (out of band— OOB) UXSPI BoMC

IMM SNMP UXSPI BoMC

Scripting individual online update packages

UXSPI N/A [1]

Note 1: Scripting individual update packages implies that an OS is running on the system.

MIGRATING FROM IMM CLI TO UXSPI

Note: For more information, see the UXSPI User’s Guide for general information on UXSPI and the UXSPI example

use cases section in this whitepaper.

MAPPING OF CLI OPTIONS

The following table maps the options that can be used on IMM1’s CLI to equivalent options available on UXSPI.

The UXSPI options can be used with any of the examples from the Using UXSPI section of this whitepaper.

IMM CLI option Description Equivalent UXSPI option

-i TFTP server IP address N/A

-l File name (to be flashed) --include=update_ids[1]

-v Verbose mode No equivalent[2]




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Note 1: An update_id is the name of an update file, minus the file extension. For example, if the update file is

called “ibm_fw_uefi_y4e150c-1.08_windows_32-64.exe” the update_id would be “ibm_fw_uefi_y4e150c-

1.08_windows_32-64”. To specify multiple update_ids at once separate them with a comma.

Note 2: There is no UXSPI parameter that produces verbose output. Details logs can be found in the IBM_Support

directory.

MIGRATING FROM IMM CLI TO BOMC

Note: For more information, see the BoMC User’s Guide for general information on BoMC and the BoMC example


MAPPING OF CLI OPTIONS

The following table maps the options that can be used on IMM1’s CLI to equivalent options available on BoMC.

The BoMC options can be used with any of the examples from the Using BoMC section of this whitepaper.

IMM CLI option Description Equivalent BoMC option

-i TFTP server IP address N/A

-l File name (to be flashed) --local=c:\workingdir

-v Verbose mode N/A

MIGRATING FROM INDIVIDUAL ONLINE UPDATE PACKAGES TO UXSPI

Note: For more information, see the UXSPI User’s Guide for general information on UXSPI and the UXSPI example


MAPPING OF EXECUTABLE UPDATE CLI PARAMETERS TO UXSPI

The following table maps the options that can be used with executable update packages to equivalent options

available on UXSPI. The UXSPI options can be used with any of the examples from the Using UXSPI section of this

whitepaper.

Executable update package CLI options

Description Equivalent UXSPI option

-x <dirname> Extracts contents of the package to <dirname>

N/A

-s, --silent, -u Quiet mode. Turns off all screen output of the update. Quiet mode also implies unattended operation.

-u

-h, -?, --help Prints help information -?

--user <User name> IMM User ID --update-args=”IMM:--user <User

name>” [1]

--password <Password> IMM Password --update-args=”IMM:--password

<Password>” [1]

--password-file <file> Pass the name of a file containing the --update-args=”IMM:--password-file

http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=TOOL-BOMC



18

Executable update package CLI options

Description Equivalent UXSPI option

password. <file>” [1]

--force Update even if target is not downlevel. --select <update_id>

--unattended Turn off attended mode. -u

--backup Target the secondary flash device if

available. --update-args=”UEFI: --backup”

--disable-imm-lan Take down lan usb interface after flashing. --disable-imm-lan

--no-reboot Do not reset the target device after update. --update-args=”IMM: --no-reboot”

Note 1: “IMM” at the start of the string indicates which update the option will apply to. Other allowable values

that can be substituted for “IMM” are “UEFI”, “DSA”, and “FPGA”.


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REFERENCES

1. IBM System x Firmware Update Best Practices

2. IBM ToolsCenter UpdateXpress System Pack Installer (UXSPI)

3. UXSPI User’s Guide

4. IBM ToolsCenter Bootable Media Creator (BoMC)

5. Bootable Media Creator Installation and User’s Guide

http://www-947.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=MIGR-5082923

http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=SERV-XPRESS

http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=SERV-XPRESS


http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=TOOL-BOMC


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