Edit: Is there anyone who has not updated their NIM servers yet?
Originally posted December 10, 2019 on AIXchange
A recent change in OS versioning requires NIM servers to run on the latest versions of AIX.
AIX Network Installation Management (NIM) can be used to build out VIO servers. If you rely on this valuable tool, take note of a recent change in OS versioning that requires the NIM server to run on the latest versions of AIX. As of VIOS 3.1.x, AIX 7.2 is now running under the covers (prior versions ran AIX 6.1). Because your NIM server’s AIX version must be at least equal to the AIX version that’s managing NIM clients, you should update to 7.2 sooner rather than later.
Which specific AIX version do you need? Chris Gibson recently provided a link on Twitter to the minimum NIM master levels for VIOS clients, which should clear up any confusion:
If using NIM to backup, install or update a VIOS partition, the NIM master must be greater than or equal to the levels shown below.
| VIOS Release | VIOS Level Minimum | NIM master level |
|---|---|---|
| VIOS 3.1.0 | VIOS 3.1.0.21 | AIX 7200-03-03 |
| VIOS 3.1.0.10 | AIX 7200-03-02 | |
| VIOS 2.2.6 | VIOS 2.2.6.41 | 7200-03-03 |
| VIOS 2.2.6.32 | 7200-03-02 | |
| VIOS 2.2.6.31 | 7200-03-01 | |
| VIOS 2.2.6.21 | 7200-02-02 | |
| VIOS 2.2.6.10 | 7200-02-01 | |
| VIOS 2.2.6.0 | 7100-02-00 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5 | VIOS 2.2.5.60 | 7200-01-06 |
| 7200-02-04 | ||
| 7200-03-04 | ||
| 7200-04-01 | ||
| VIOS 2.2.5.50 | 7200-03-01 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5.40 | 7200-02-02 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5.30 | 7200-02-01 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5.20 | 7200-01-02 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5.10 | 7200-01-01 | |
| VIOS 2.2.5.0 | 7100-04-03 |
The complete chart found with the link also includes information for earlier VIOS versions as well AIX 6.1 and AIX 7.1. But again, going forward, to install VIOS 3.1.x you must be at AIX 7.2, so these recommendations are the ones that matter. If your NIM and VIO servers aren’t yet updated, get moving.