10
Thu, Oct
2 New Articles

More POWER7 Iron to Hit the Skids

Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

With POWER7 systems on the way out, let’s discuss migrating to POWER9.

On October 2, IBM announced the following systems will be going end-of-service on December 31, 2020:

Machine Type

Model

Product Name

8202

E4D

IBM Power 720 Express Server

8205

E6D

IBM Power 740 Express Server

8231

E1D

IBM Power 710 Express Server

8231

E2D

IBM Power 730 Express Server

8246

L1D

IBM PowerLinux 7R1 Server

8246

L1T

IBM PowerLinux 7R1 Server

8246

L2D

IBM PowerLinux 7R2 Server

8246

L2T

IBM PowerLinux 7R2 Server

8248

L4T

BM PowerLinux 7R4 Server

8268

E1D

IBM Power 710 Express Server

8408

E8D

IBM Power 750 Express Server

8412

EAD

IBM Power ESE Server

9109

RMD

IBM Power 760 Server

9117

MMD

IBM Power 770 Server

9119

FHB

IBM Power 795 Server

9179

MHD

IBM Power 780 Server


That gives customers with these systems a little over a year to get a plan in place to upgrade to POWER9 servers. This announcement appears to have hit with little fanfare. Given that last year’s announcement of POWER7 servers focused on the small to medium-sized systems (and therefore more common and widespread), it’s not surprising. However, these particular systems announced this month are on the higher end of the compute spectrum and therefore will likely be more complex and expensive migrations to plan for. That’s likely why the announcement gave a little extra time to build space into 2020 or 2021 budgets.

From a planning perspective, it kind of dovetails nicely with the end of support announcement for IBM i 7.2, which will be happening on April 30, 2021. Given that 7.2 was announced in 2014 and IBM has a majority of supported customers on 7.3, that announcement was no surprise. Plus, IBM i 7.4 was released last summer, and IBM doesn’t want to support three versions of the operating system concurrently for too long.

My company did about 400 6.1/7.1 to 7.2/7.3 upgrades in 2018. The majority of those upgrades were to 7.3. Those systems we took to 7.2 and stopped were primarily for Java reasons. 7.2 still “supports” Java 6, although Java 6 isn’t actually supported. What I mean is that you can run Java 6 on 7.2. Vendor applications relying on Java 6 dictated that 7.2 was the furthest we can take a customer in 99% of all cases. With the extra time allowed before the end of 7.2, any vendors who’ve been straggling behind on 7.2 are given extra tension for change to provide 7.3 and 7.4 (i.e., Java 7 and Java 8) support for their software.

IBM’s move incentivizes customers to maintain support by moving off these POWER7 machines to POWER9 in the next 14 months, and it also lines them up nicely for an operating system before or during their hardware migration. Personally, I’d like to get the operating system upgraded in advance of any hardware move. It’s just easier that way. When you’re replacing only the hardware, you’re making things simpler in terms of troubleshooting something if it goes sideways. Is it the hardware? Is it the software? Licensed programs? Java? Doing a mixed-mode migration and skipping releases while going to new iron can certainly complicate the overall migration. This is why I upgrade to a supported release that both new and old iron can run; then the restore to the new system is seamless. Any problems related to the OS upgrade are handled as part of that project. When the new iron arrives, it’s now a simple save and restore to the new system.

When you order your POWER9, you need to be aware of the lack of an internal tape drive and an internal DVD; they just aren’t made anymore. Please ensure your business partner orders an external DVD and external tape drive option (or virtual tape library). Sometimes, customers order systems without an external DVD. I don’t really like that. While POWER8 (with updated firmware) and POWER9 systems support a USB storage device, not everyone is prepared to use it. It’s different. It’s new. That’s not a bad thing, but just be prepared if you want to do a D-mode IPL and you don’t have media devices to do so. Having the DVD on the order ensures that you will have a device to boot a LIC respin from, if it ever comes to that.

The tape drive difference is a bigger concern when it comes to a migration. It pays to keep your tape technology current. If you’re moving from a system with an internal LTO4 drive to a LTO7 drive, the LTO7 drive won’t read your LTO4 tapes. Be sure that your new tape technology can read your old tapes.

I’m seeing a lot of customers moving to virtual tape libraries (VTLs). My favorite value of a VTL is speed. I did a SAVSYS (Go Save option 22) for a customer recently. The SAVSYS took a little over two minutes. On the average physical tape, it takes around 20-30 minutes. If you go the VTL route, always buy two. You’ll want to replicate one device to another. VTLs are electrical. If your VTL dies, you have no recovery device. You want your backup media off site to another VTL. Many of these VTL options allow for deduplication and encryption, so there’s added benefit there. The payback of having two devices is easy. You remove a few costly things: tape management (i.e., people moving tapes), tape storage (a safe or storage service), and tapes themselves, which aren’t cheap. If you factor in those three costs, you can likely justify a virtual tape library. It’ll also reduce your backup and recovery time. I can’t say enough about VTLs.

Happy migrating!

Steve Pitcher
Steve Pitcher works with iTech Solutions, an IBM Premier Business Partner. He is a specialist in IBM i and IBM Power Systems solutions since 2001. Feel free to contact him directly This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS

LATEST COMMENTS

Support MC Press Online

$

Book Reviews

Resource Center

  • SB Profound WC 5536 Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application. You can find Part 1 here. In Part 2 of our free Node.js Webinar Series, Brian May teaches you the different tooling options available for writing code, debugging, and using Git for version control. Brian will briefly discuss the different tools available, and demonstrate his preferred setup for Node development on IBM i or any platform. Attend this webinar to learn:

  • SB Profound WP 5539More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT Generic IBM announced the E1080 servers using the latest Power10 processor in September 2021. The most powerful processor from IBM to date, Power10 is designed to handle the demands of doing business in today’s high-tech atmosphere, including running cloud applications, supporting big data, and managing AI workloads. But what does Power10 mean for your data center? In this recorded webinar, IBMers Dan Sundt and Dylan Boday join IBM Power Champion Tom Huntington for a discussion on why Power10 technology is the right strategic investment if you run IBM i, AIX, or Linux. In this action-packed hour, Tom will share trends from the IBM i and AIX user communities while Dan and Dylan dive into the tech specs for key hardware, including:

  • Magic MarkTRY the one package that solves all your document design and printing challenges on all your platforms. Produce bar code labels, electronic forms, ad hoc reports, and RFID tags – without programming! MarkMagic is the only document design and print solution that combines report writing, WYSIWYG label and forms design, and conditional printing in one integrated product. Make sure your data survives when catastrophe hits. Request your trial now!  Request Now.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericForms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericIT security is a top priority for businesses around the world, but most IBM i pros don’t know where to begin—and most cybersecurity experts don’t know IBM i. In this session, Robin Tatam explores the business impact of lax IBM i security, the top vulnerabilities putting IBM i at risk, and the steps you can take to protect your organization. If you’re looking to avoid unexpected downtime or corrupted data, you don’t want to miss this session.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericCan you trust all of your users all of the time? A typical end user receives 16 malicious emails each month, but only 17 percent of these phishing campaigns are reported to IT. Once an attack is underway, most organizations won’t discover the breach until six months later. A staggering amount of damage can occur in that time. Despite these risks, 93 percent of organizations are leaving their IBM i systems vulnerable to cybercrime. In this on-demand webinar, IBM i security experts Robin Tatam and Sandi Moore will reveal:

  • FORTRA Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAManaging messages on your IBM i can be more than a full-time job if you have to do it manually. Messages need a response and resources must be monitored—often over multiple systems and across platforms. How can you be sure you won’t miss important system events? Automate your message center with the Robot Message Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAThe thought of printing, distributing, and storing iSeries reports manually may reduce you to tears. Paper and labor costs associated with report generation can spiral out of control. Mountains of paper threaten to swamp your files. Robot automates report bursting, distribution, bundling, and archiving, and offers secure, selective online report viewing. Manage your reports with the Robot Report Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAFor over 30 years, Robot has been a leader in systems management for IBM i. With batch job creation and scheduling at its core, the Robot Job Scheduling Solution reduces the opportunity for human error and helps you maintain service levels, automating even the biggest, most complex runbooks. Manage your job schedule with the Robot Job Scheduling Solution. Key features include:

  • LANSA Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.

  • LANSAWhen it comes to creating your business applications, there are hundreds of coding platforms and programming languages to choose from. These options range from very complex traditional programming languages to Low-Code platforms where sometimes no traditional coding experience is needed. Download our whitepaper, The Power of Writing Code in a Low-Code Solution, and:

  • LANSASupply Chain is becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable. From raw materials for manufacturing to food supply chains, the journey from source to production to delivery to consumers is marred with inefficiencies, manual processes, shortages, recalls, counterfeits, and scandals. In this webinar, we discuss how:

  • The MC Resource Centers bring you the widest selection of white papers, trial software, and on-demand webcasts for you to choose from. >> Review the list of White Papers, Trial Software or On-Demand Webcast at the MC Press Resource Center. >> Add the items to yru Cart and complet he checkout process and submit

  • Profound Logic Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application.

  • SB Profound WC 5536Join us for this hour-long webcast that will explore:

  • Fortra IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn: