IBMi.org – Bart's blog

IBM i and PowerVM features and tools

How to automate update of Access Keys for POWER8

7 Comments Posted by on February 15, 2017

The other day, I’ve wrote about POWER8 ‘feature’ which requires from an administrator update of  access keys in order to keep a server eligible for the firmware upgrade POWER8 – No hardware maintenance-no firmware upgrade . An administrator needs to enter these every few months, if a maintenance contract is re-signed every few months. This can be a headache, or something bigger if someone runs multiple servers. There is a secret HMC function, which can update the keys automatically.

I think this function has been introduced in the HMC FW 8.8.6 but I can’t find it documented in the ‘Read me’. Older releases have different window and the function is unavailable.

No idea why IBM made this so hidden. Anyway, in order to activate it, go to Service Management -> Transmit Service Information and select Update Access Key Information with some interval.

Below you can find a picture where to find it in the Classic and the Enhanced GUI.

 

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Administration, Automation, Hardware, HMC, POWER, Uncategorized

7 responses to “How to automate update of Access Keys for POWER8”

  1. Rob February 23, 2017 at 19:23

    Any way to do this from the command line?

    Reply
  2. Jon April 26, 2017 at 15:13

    Thanks for this! I’ve been looking for this for a while without anyone offering the option up. Appreciate it!

    Reply
  3. Igor June 15, 2017 at 23:57

    Tracy Smith had a slide on that (and more) in his May 2017 presentation in Orlando – p014924 Managing firmware on your Power System.

    Reply
    • Bart June 16, 2017 at 05:28

      Did she refer to my blog ?

      Reply
      • Igor June 16, 2017 at 17:18

        Not sure 🙂
        P.S. BTW, Tracy Smith is a he, and most likely you know him. He and Mark Olson are the stalwarts of iSeries/Power community. Sadly, they are both retiring – Mark Olson this year and Tracy Smith next.
        P.P.S. Enjoyed your presentation at LUG earlier this month – nicely done!

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