IBM Support

Linux IBM Z Requirements and Support

Preventive Service Planning


Abstract

IBM Spectrum Protect for Linux IBM Z Requirements and Support

Content

Minimum Hardware and Software Requirements


Tip: The product now known as IBM Spectrum Protect™ was named IBM Tivoli® Storage Manager in releases earlier than Version 7.1.3. To learn more about the rebranding transition, see http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21963634.
Note: This document describes system requirements for IBM Spectrum Protect 8.1.12 and earlier.  Links to system requirements for more recent IBM Spectrum Protect server levels can be found here.

Versions that have reached End of Support:
  • IBM Spectrum Protect 7.1
IBM Spectrum Protect Version 8.1
Minimum Hardware Requirements
Hardware
An IBM® Z, IBM® zSeries, IBM System z9®, IBM System z10®, or IBM zEnterprise® System (z114 and z196) 64-bit native logical partition (LPAR) or z/VM® guest.
Disk Space
The following minimum values for disk space:
  • 512 MB for the /var directory
    • 5 GB for the installation directory
  • 2 GB for the /tmp directory
  • 128 MB in the home directory for the root user
In version 8.1.2 and later, the minimum values are:
  • 7.5 GB for the installation directory
  • 4 GB for the /tmp directory
  • 2.5 GB for the /var directory

Tip: Expect to use more space for problem determination.
  • 2 GB for the shared resources area

Significant additional disk space is required for database and log files. The size of the database depends on the number of client files to be stored and the method by which the server manages them. The default active log space is 16 GB, the minimum that is needed for most workloads and configurations. When you create the active log, you need at least 64 GB in size to run replication. If replication and data deduplication are both being used, create an active log of 128 GB in size. Allocate at least three times the default active log space for the archive log (48 GB). Ensure that you have sufficient resources if you are using data deduplication or expect a heavy client workload.


You must format the disk device to have a disk sector size of 512 bytes.

For optimal performance and to facilitate I/O, specify at least two equally sized containers or Logical Unit Numbers (LUNs) for the database. In addition, each active log and archive log should have its own container or LUN.

Ensure that you see the capacity planning section for more details about disk space.

Memory
The following are the minimum system memory requirements for servers with databases up to 500 GB, with daily ingestion of no more than 200 GB per day:
  • 16 GB for standard server operations without data deduplication and node replication.
  • 24 GB for data deduplication or node replication.
  • 32 GB if you plan to use node replication with data deduplication.

For more specific memory requirements for larger databases and higher ingestion capability, see the IBM Spectrum Protect server memory tuning table.

For more specific memory requirements see the IBM Spectrum Protect Blueprint.

IBM Spectrum Protect Version 8.1
Minimum Software Requirements
Operating System
The IBM Spectrum Protect server on Linux on IBM Z (s390x 64-bit architecture) requires one of the following operating systems:
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, all updates are supported
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12, all updates are supported
Libraries
GNU C library, Version 2.4-31.43.6 is installed on the IBM Spectrum Protect system.

For SUSE Linux Enterprise Servers:

  • libaio
  • libstdc++.so.6 at version 4.3 or later (32 and 64 bit packages are required)
  • libxlc-1.2.0.0.151119a.s390x or later
For Red Hat Enterprise Linux Servers:
  • libaio
  • libstdc++.so.6 (32 and 64 bit packages are required)
  • numactl.x86_64
  • libxlc-1.2.0.0.151119a.s390x or later
Communication Protocol
  • TCP/IP Version 4 or Version 6, which is standard with Linux
  • Shared memory protocol (with IBM Spectrum Protect Version 8.1 Linux on IBM Z client)
Processing
Asynchronous I/O must be enabled. On Linux kernels at 2.6 or later, install the libaio library to enable Asynchronous I/O.
Other
Korn Shell (ksh)
You must have the I/O completion ports (IOCP) configured on the operating system.

LDAP
To authenticate IBM Spectrum Protect users with a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) server, you must use one of the following directory servers:
  • Microsoft Active Directory (Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2012)
  • IBM Security Directory Server V6.3
  • IBM Security Directory Server V6.4
 
Version 7.1 has reached End of Support (EOS)
IBM Spectrum Protect Version 7.1
Minimum Hardware and Software Requirements
Hardware
An IBM® Z, IBM® zSeries, IBM System z9®, IBM System z10®, or IBM zEnterprise® System (z114 and z196) 64-bit native logical partition (LPAR) or z/VM® guest.
Disk space
The following minimum values for disk space:
  • 512 MB for the /var directory
    • 5 GB for the installation directory
  • 2 GB for the /tmp directory
  • 128 MB in the home directory for the root user
Tip: Expect to use more space for problem determination.
  • 2 GB for the shared resources area

Significant additional disk space is required for database and log files. The size of the database depends on the number of client files to be stored and the method by which the server manages them. The default active log space is 16 GB, the minimum that is needed for most workloads and configurations. Allocate at least three times the active log space for the archive log (48 GB). Ensure that you have sufficient resources if you are using data deduplication or expect a heavy client workload.


You must format the disk device to have a disk sector size of 512 bytes.

For optimal performance and to facilitate I/O, specify at least two equally sized containers or Logical Unit Numbers (LUNs) for the database. See Optimizing Performance for more information about the configuration of directories for the database. In addition, each active log and archive log should have its own container or LUN.

Ensure that you see the capacity planning section for more details about disk space.

Memory
The following minimum values for memory:
  • 12 GB.
  • 16 GB if you are using data deduplication.
  • At least 40 GB for heavily used servers. Using 40 GB or more of memory enhances performance of the IBM Spectrum Protect server database inventory.
  • If you plan to run multiple instances, each instance requires the memory listed for one server. Multiply the memory for one server by the number of instances planned for the system.
  • Node replication processing requires additional memory. Use a minimum of 32 GB of memory for node replication without data deduplication. Node replication with data deduplication requires a minimum of 64 GB of memory.
  • When you create the active log, you need at least 64 GB of memory to run replication. If replication and deduplication are both being used, create an active log of 128 GB in size.
Operating system
The IBM Spectrum Protect server on Linux on IBM Z (s390x 64-bit architecture) requires one of the following operating systems:
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (starting with IBM Tivoli Storage Manager v7.1.1.100)
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11, Service Pack 2
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 (starting with v7.1.4.000)
Libraries
GNU C library, Version 2.4-31.43.6 is installed on the IBM Spectrum Protect system.
For SUSE Linux Enterprise Servers:
  • libaio
  • libstdc++.so.5 at version 3.3 or later (32 and 64 bit packages are required)
  • libstdc++.so.6 at version 4.3 or later (32 and 64 bit packages are required)
For Red Hat Enterprise Linux Servers:
  • libaio
  • libstdc++.so.6 (32 and 64 bit packages are required)
  • numactl.x86_64
Communication protocol
  • TCP/IP Version 4 or Version 6, which is standard with Linux
  • Shared memory protocol (with IBM Spectrum Protect Version 7.1.3 Linux on IBM Z client)
Processing
Asynchronous I/O must be enabled. On Linux kernels at 2.6 or later, install the libaio library to enable Asynchronous I/O.
Other software
Korn Shell (ksh)

To authenticate IBM Spectrum Protect users with a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) server, you must use one of the following directory servers:
  • Microsoft Active Directory (Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2012)
  • IBM Security Directory Server V6.3
  • IBM Security Directory Server V6.4
 
   

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Document Information

Modified date:
28 March 2022

UID

swg21108040