If you have a LPAR that is not booting from your NIM server, and you're certain the IP configuration on the client is correct, for example by completing a successful ping test, then you should have a look at the bootp process on the NIM server as a possible cause of the issue.

To accomplish this, you can put bootp into debug mode. Edit file /etc/inetd.conf, and comment out the bootps entry with a hash mark (#). This will help to avoid bootp being started by the inetd in response to a bootp request. Then refresh the inetd daemon, to pick up the changes to file /etc/inetd.conf:

# refresh -s inetd

Now check if any bootpd processes are running. If necessary, use kill -9 to kill them. Again check if no more bootpd processes are active. Now that bootp has stopped go ahead and bring up another PuTTY window on your NIM master. You'll need another window opened, because putting bootp into debug is going to lock the window, while it is active. Run the following command in that window:

# bootpd -d -d -d -d -s

Now you can retry to boot the LPAR from your NIM master, and you should see information scrolling by of what is going on.

Afterwards, once you've identified the issue, make sure to stop the bootpd process (just hit ctrl-c to make it stop), and change file /etc/inetd.conf back the way it was, and run refresh -s inetd to refresh it again.



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