Operating System Installation: Getting Started

Introduction to Base Operating System Installation

This guide provides an overview of the necessary steps to complete an installation of the AIX 5.2 Base Operating System (BOS).

The BOS installation program first restores the run-time bos image, then installs the appropriate filesets, depending on whether you are installing from a graphical or an ASCII system. The installation program automatically installs required message filesets and devices filesets, according to the language you choose and the hardware configuration of the installed machine.

You can use the following methods for installing AIX:

New and Complete Overwrite: This method installs AIX 5.2 on a new machine or completely overwrites any BOS version that exists on your system.
Migration: This method upgrades from AIX 4.2 or later versions of the BOS to AIX 5.2. A migration installation preserves most file systems, including the root volume group, logical volumes, and system configuration files. It overwrites the /tmp file system.
Preservation: This method replaces an earlier version of the BOS but retains the root volume group, the user-created logical volumes, and the /home file system. It overwrites the /usr, var, tmp, and / (root) file systems. Product (application) files and configuration data are lost. For information about preservation installation, see the AIX 5L Version 5.2 Installation Guide and Reference.

The table below shows the differences in the installation steps between the new and complete ovewrite installation and the migration methods.

Table 1. AIX BOS Installation Methods
Installation Steps	New and Complete Overwrite	Migration
Make rootvg	Yes	No
Make filesystem /, /usr, /var	Yes	No
Make filesystem /home	Yes	No
Save Configuration	No	Yes
Restore BOS	Yes	Yes
Install Additional Filesets	Yes	Yes
Restore Configuration	No	Yes

Electronic License Agreements

AIX 5.2 ships with software license agreements and are viewable electronically. If a product has an electronic license agreement, it must be accepted before software installation can continue. In the case of initial BOS installation, you can view and accept license agreements in a license agreement dialog after the installation has occurred, but before the system is available for use as part of Configuration Assistant (graphical consoles) or Installation Assistant (ASCII consoles).

The Base Operating System (BOS) has a license agreement, but not all software packages do. When you agree to the license agreement for BOS installation, you are also accepting all license agreements for any software installed automatically with the BOS. Some software, such as the GNOME or KDE desktops, can be optionally installed during BOS installation; the appropriate licensing information for such software is displayed separately.

For more information on license manipulation, see the AIX 5L Version 5.2 Installation Guide and Reference.