Newsflash? IBM Has Made and Sold Enterprise Computers for Decades

Rob McNelly has fun with a tech website's noteworthy lack of AIX/Power Systems awareness and shares information from recent IBM security bulletins

I laughed when I saw this headline.

It’s well worth the click, but for those who didn’t, this piece is actually titled: “Why Costco Still Relies On IBM Computers From The ’80s.”

As you might imagine, the article itself is … problematic. Some things are flat out wrong. For example:

“IBM computers haven’t made any tides in the market since the 80’s. This may seem like a drawback to many, but it’s part of what makes these computers so safe; people looking to spread malice through viruses don’t go out of their way to target antiquated tech. These systems are so old and reliable that any viruses made to target modern PCs simply don’t work on them.”

To be fair though, there is this acknowledgment in the introduction:

“This doesn’t mean that Costco is actually using ancient, obsolete tech from the ’80s, though. Just like Windows 10 is not the same as Windows 7 and how the newest iPhone can’t be compared to first-generation Apple products, IBM hardware and software have gotten numerous updates since they first came out.”

I don’t know anything about BGR, including what the initials stand for. The site describes itself as a long-running source of tech, entertainment and science news. Its writers are obviously unfamiliar with AIX or Power Systems hardware, and probably IBM enterprise solutions as a whole.

In any event, I had fun coming up with my own misleading headlines:

“Drivers rely on internal combustion engines, technology from the 1800s.”

“Cellular networks rely on technology that was first described in the 1940s.”

“Personal computer users still using an operating system first released in 1985.”

“Companies are trusting their businesses to a 40-year-old operating system.”

You get the idea. Anyway, let that last headline serve as a reminder: AIX is turning 40 this year, and as I wrote recently, the OS keeps improving and I do not see that changing any time soon.

On that note, I may need to update my list of things that I love most about it.

Recent Security Bulletins and APARs

IBM Support recently issued these security bulletins:

1) “AIX/VIOS is vulnerable to potential code execution (CVE-2025-61984, CVE-2025-61985) due to OpenSSH”

2) Here’s an APAR about the padmin .profile:

“On VIO servers the wtmp file is cleared for unknown reasons.
This is due to the following line in padmin .profile file
:
ioscli cleanios
So each time the .profile is run a cleanios is run that might empty wtmp if wtmp is greater than 10 Mb.
That must be changed to:
alias cleanios=”ioscli cleanios”

3) Here’s how to deal with a viosupgrade error:

“viosupgrade fails with below error

$ viosupgrade -l -i /home/padmin/mksysb -a hdisk0
<====snip====>
Upgrading from ioslevel ‘3.1.4.60’ to ‘4.1.1.00’
<====snip====>
Initiating installation on alternate disk(s)..
Migration of contents to new rootvg initiated.
Installation on alternate disk(s) successful.
Copying files to altinst_rootvg.
Waking up altinst_rootvg successful.
Failed to copy ‘Additional user /home directories file to newly installed rootvg.
Local fix
Go to the end of /var/adm/ras/ioslogs/viosupg_global.log and you would see the file causing issue.

“20644146 0 Tue Dec 9 12:38:29 2025 main::copy_directory
Cannot check “/home/padmin/snap.pax.Z TSXXXXXXXX
if it is remote FS or local FS, Skipping…”

IBM registration is required to access this APAR.

New Linux Malware

Here’s an interesting article about never before seen Linux malware:

“Researchers have discovered a never-before-seen framework that infects Linux machines with a wide assortment of modules that are notable for the range of advanced capabilities they provide to attackers.

“The framework, referred to as VoidLink by its source code, features more than 30 modules that can be used to customize capabilities to meet attackers’ needs for each infected machine. These modules can provide additional stealth and specific tools for reconnaissance, privilege escalation, and lateral movement inside a compromised network. The components can be easily added or removed as objectives change over the course of a campaign.”

Help With Firmware Planning

This chart can help with your firmware planning:

“In order to plan correctly for system firmware maintenance, there is a need to know when new Releases are coming out along with when a release is planned to go end of service pack support. Therefore, the below table was created to provide this detail. Things can come up that alters this schedule somewhat, but this is the current plan. As things change, the table is updated to reflect status.”

NIM the Subject of Recent Power Systems VUG Webinar

Check out the latest Power Systems VUG webinar featuring Jaqui Lynch discussing NIM. The 90-minute replay hadn’t been posted at the time of this writing, but expect to see it soon:

“This session will focus on leveraging NIM (Network Installation Manager) to streamline the provisioning and maintenance of AIX and VIOS LPARs, enabling faster migrations and simplified system management.

“Key takeaways include:
* Setting up and optimizing a NIM server for automated installations, updates, and recovery.
* Hands-on techniques for migrations, including nimadm and alt disk copy.
* Best practices for backing up and restoring NIM itself.
* Using File Backed Optical (FBO) to enhance NIM functionality.”

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