Informing the IBM Community

Cloud Walkers bring new tools to IBM i administrators

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Cloud Walkers s.r.o is a new company that has been set up by Bartlomiej Grabowski who is an IBM Champion, their aim is to bring new tools to IBM i administrators, and at the moment their tools are called LPARKit. Below is the detail that PowerWire.eu received about their new tools.

LPARKit is a green screen interface which isolate VIOS/HMC layer from IBM i administrator. The expectiation is that the IBM i administrator has the POWER server + infrastructure already configured equiped with the HMC and VIOS. And if he wants to quickly deploy a new LPAR, the tool helps him doing this from the green-screen interface. 

The tool comes in two versions:

Light – It allows to create an LPAR from green command line. It also creates storage (NPIV or vSCSI) adapters (depending what type of connection the user needs), a virtual ethernet adapter. It is very simple and very quick. There is also an option to delete the logical partition. It deletes the LPAR and remove all mapping on the VIOSes.

Light version is completely free for everyone .

Gold release –  a charged feature offers in addition to light version IBM i cloning functionality. The idea is that a user runs the template IBM i LPAR which can be cloned to a new LPAR. It is something very similar what you can achieve with PowerVC but:

  • you don’t need flashcopy functionality. The template image is copying between VIOSes.
  • Cloning is really cloning of the IBM i OS. It is expected that the user or a business partner prepares the OS with PTFs, with all programs ,tools which he usually deploys. Such image is cloned to new LPAR. The new LPAR is booted with new IP address, new system name (DSPNETA), hostname, domain.
  • Template can be copied between different physical servers
  • OS cloning can be done even on the internal storage (but VIOS must be configured)
  • It brings management module to map/unmap NPIV adapters from green screen on the LPARs or add/remove vSCSI disks to LPAR. Everything from green screen
  • Virtual adapters reporting. Create a spool file or csv file with NPIV mapping. Virtual slots IDs, WWPN, physical port information. 

I believe it is great alternative for IBM i administrators who do not understand VIOS or HMC. Also, if they want to do things quickly, there is no better way to do it.

You can see how light version works https://youtu.be/eTk0-IZdNgQ

We are currently working on the next release, which will be designed for small P05/P10 customers who do not use VIOS and the HMC. The tool provides an interface to create a new LPAR directly from the green-screen, he does not have to use Virtual Partition Manager in SST anymore.  It will also allow to attach new NWSD image with the OS. So, cloning for small environments will be possible too.

Visit www.cwalkers.com for further information

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