Edit: This is still the only way to do HMC upgrades.
Originally posted April 21, 2020 on AIXchange
A guide for remote upgrades on the HMC.
I love that it’s possible to do remote upgrades on the HMC. This isn’t anything new of course, so imagine my shock when I was recently in a conversation with someone who didn’t realize that remote HMC upgrades can be done via the network.
Happily, there’s a lot of good documentation about remote upgrades, and HMC upgrades in general. Let’s start with IBM Support. Here’s how to upgrade to Version 8.8.7, and here’s how to upgrade x86 or Model 7042 versions to Version 9. Both docs provide detailed information about various methods, so they’re helpful whether you’re using the network or some DVDs.
Here are directions for getting updates for your HMC. The IBM Knowledge Center has a deeper dive into this same topic.
Finally, here are a couple of things from my archive. In 2011 I wrote about remote upgrades. Spoiler: I loved them back when, too—so much so that I revisited the topic back in 2013.
Yes, a lot of this information is dated, but it remains applicable. Plus a refresher never hurts.