Importing a boot image

You can import an AIX or IBM i boot image by using the IBM® Power® Virtual Server CLI or the console. All data centers use Tier 1 (NVMe-based flash storage) or Tier 3 (SSD flash storage) storage types. The Tier 1 storage type is best for customers who require higher throughput. Customers who do not require exceptionally high throughput and are looking to minimize costs want to select Tier 3. The storage types cannot be changed once the volume is created. A VM cannot have disks from both storage types. Large boot images take time to successfully import. You might experience a delay before receiving a confirmation message.

Image import requires HMAC keys (access, secret) in order to access your IBM Cloud Object Storage bucket. If you have not already generated your HMAC keys you can follow the instructions in Using IBM COS HMAC credentials.

The IBM® Power® Virtual Server Job feature tracks long-running asynchronous operations like VM capture, image export, and image import across multiple workspaces in your cloud account.

As part of this Job feature, the following API and CLIs are available:

• API for image import - Create a new image from available images you have stored in IBM COS.
• CLI command - ibmcloud pi image import.
• CLI command ibmcloud pi jobs.

The Power Virtual Server VM capture, image export, and image import features are restricted to one operation at a time per Power Virtual Server workspace. If one of these operations is submitted successfully, then another new operation (VM capture, image export, and image import) cannot be submitted until the previous operation is complete.

Using the Power Virtual Server user interface to import a boot image

Complete the following steps to import a boot image by using the Power Virtual Server user interface.

The Image file name field supports the following formats: .ova, .ova.gz, .tar, .tar.gz and .tgz.

1. Click Boot images, then Import image.

2. After you click Import, enter all of the required information. Refer to the table at the bottom of the page to complete the necessary fields to import a boot image.

3. Find your newly uploaded boot image in Boot images.

Table 1. Boot images options

Field	Description
Catalog image name	Enter the name that you want your imported image to display in your image name catalog.
Storage type	Select whether you want Tier 1 (NVMe-based flash storage) or Tier 3 (SSD flash storage) for the storage type. A VM cannot have disks from both Tier 1 and Tier 3 storage types.
Storage pool	The custom image storage volume(s) will be placed in the storage pool based on the storage pool placement options (auto-select, affinity, or anti-affinity) that you choose. The boot volume of any VM that is deployed by using this image will be deployed in the same storage pool. For more information about storage volumes, see Adding and managing storage volumes.
Auto-select pool	Select this option to automatically create the storage volume in a pool that has sufficient capacity.
Affinity	Use this option to identify the storage pool that must be used to place the boot volumes, based on an existing PVM instance (VM) or storage volume from your account. The custom image storage volumes will be placed in the same storage pool where the affinity object resides. If you are using a PVM instance as the affinity object, the storage pool that is selected to place the boot volumes is based on the PVM instance’s root (boot) volume.
Anti-affinity	Use this option to identify one or more storage pools that you want to exclude from getting selected to place the boot voulmes based on one or more existing PVM instances (VMs) or storage volumes from your account. While choosing a storage pool to create the custom image storage volume(s), the storage pools in which the list of anti-affinity object(s) reside will not be selected. If you are using PVM instances as the anti-affinity objects, the storage pools are excluded depending on each PVM instance’s root (boot) volume that you specified.
Source details (Cloud storage)	Use the following fields to set the Cloud storage details.
Region	Select either us-east, us-south, ca-tor, eu-de, or eu-gb, au-syd, jp-tok, jp-osa for the region.
Image file name	Enter the file name of the image. The image file name must not contain spaces. Supported file formats are tar and ova. You can compress image files by using gzip. The supported file name extensions are .ova, .ova.gz, .tar, .tar.gz and .tgz. You must use the private endpoint domain. For example, Aix_7200-03-02-1846_cldrdy_112018.gz.
Bucket name	Sub folders can be used and specified as bucketName/optional/folders. Optional folders are created automatically if they don’t exist. To identity your bucket name, select Menu icon > Resource list > Storage > Cloud Object Storage name > Buckets.
Cloud Object Storage access key	To identify your access key, select Menu icon > Resource list > Storage > Cloud Object Storage name > Service credentials > View credentials. Copy the access_key_id value and past it into this field.
Cloud Object Storage secret key	To identify your secret key, select Menu icon > Resource list > Storage > Cloud Object Storage name > Service credentials > View credentials. Copy the secret_access_key value and paste it into this field.