IBM AIX 7.3 – Common Problem 232 – Diagnosis and Fix

📖 ~1 min read

Table of contents

1. Symptom & Impact
2. Environment & Reproduction
3. Root Cause Analysis
4. Quick Triage
5. Step-by-Step Diagnosis
6. Solution – Primary Fix
7. Solution – Alternative Approaches
8. Verification & Acceptance Criteria
9. Rollback Plan
10. Prevention & Hardening
11. Related Errors & Cross-Refs
12. References & Further Reading

Symptom & Impact

nim -o bos_inst against the client aborts and the client hangs in NIM Setup.

Environment & Reproduction

Occurs when lpp_source level mismatches the SPOT or NIM master cannot reach the client over port 1058.

Root Cause Analysis

SPOT not synchronized with lpp_source, or firewall/NIC config blocks NIM bootp/tftp.

Quick Triage

On the NIM master run lsnim -l clientname and check /var/adm/ras/nimlog.

Step-by-Step Diagnosis

Test tftp and bootp from the client subnet and run nim -o check on the SPOT.

Solution – Primary Fix

Re-sync the SPOT with nim -o check -a force=yes spot1 and restart nim -o reset clientname.

Solution – Alternative Approaches

Rebuild the SPOT from lpp_source with nim -o remove then nim -o define -t spot.

Verification & Acceptance Criteria

Client BOS install completes and lsnim shows Mstate = currently running.

Rollback Plan

Boot the client from a known good mksysb via nim -o bos_inst -a source=mksysb.

Prevention & Hardening

Keep lpp_source and SPOT at matching technology levels and patch NIM master regularly.

Related Errors & Cross-Refs

Often co-occurs with bootp/tftp errors on the NIM master interface.

Related tutorial: View the step-by-step tutorial for aix-7.3.

View all aix-7.3 tutorials on the Tutorials Hub →

Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.

References & Further Reading

IBM AIX 7.3 NIM administration guide – troubleshooting lpp_source and SPOT.