IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 25, Number 42

October 16, 2023 Doug Bidwell

Welcome back to work this week. IBM i 7.2 has two new PTF groups even though it has been in extended support from Big Blue since April 30, 2021. The IBM i 7.2 release is still on extended support until April 30, 2024, which is why the security and HIPER group PTFs have been updated for this release. Specifically, that is:

SF99718 720 Group Security – level 124, which you can find out more about here.
SF99719 720 Group HIPER – level 235, which you can find out more about there.

As we reported last week in The Four Hundred, IBM has killed off the Db2 Web Query for i tool. The announcement letter is here, and here is what IBM has to say: “There is no direct replacement for IBM Db2 Web Query for i. Customers who need to continue to do data analytics could explore other industry solutions, for example, IBM Cognos Analytics, or open source products like Open Data Hub (ODH), Apache Spark, Apache Superset, or RocketCE for Power. This is not a comprehensive list of data analytics products. Other companies may offer products which have similar function found in IBM Db2 Web Query for i.”

Also, IBM continues to simplify the IBM i portfolio: Licensed software withdrawal of selected IBM i LPPs and IBM i optional features, which you can find out more about at this link. The IBM i (5770-SS1) PTFs which remove the license checking function will be available on October 24, 2023, and are as follows:

IBM i 7.5: SI83648
IBM i 7.4: SI83647
IBM i 7.3: SI83646
IBM i 7.2: SI83645
IBM i 7.1: SI84524

And finally, there are two new security vulnerabilities for the IBM i platform this week.

First, we have Security Bulletin: OpenSSL and OpenSSH for IBM i are vulnerable to arbitrary code execution, denial of service, and security restrictions bypass due to multiple vulnerabilities, which you can find out more about here. The IBM i PTF number for 5733-SC1 contains the fixes for the vulnerabilities:

IBM i Release, 5733-SC1	PTF Number
7.5	SI84812	
7.4, 7.3, 7.2	SI84808

Second, we have Security Bulletin: IBM i is vulnerable to a local privilege escalation due to a flaw in IBM Directory Server for i (CVE-2023-40378), which you can get details about at this link. The IBM i PTF number for 5770-SS1 contains the fix for the vulnerability. ATTENTION: Valid use cases are negatively impacted by the vulnerability fix. DO NOT APPLY THE FIXES. The bulletin will be updated when a new fix is available.

IBM i Release	5770-SS1		PTF Download Link
7.5	DO NOT APPLY 	SI84569	 
7.4	DO NOT APPLY 	SI84583	 
7.3	DO NOT APPLY 	SI84586	 
7.2	DO NOT APPLY 	SI84584

Here is the rundown of PTF Groups by IBM i release level since we last published:

PTF Groups 7.5:

HIPERs (High Impact/Pervasive)
Security
SAP support required PTF list for IBM i 7.5
Memo to Users
What’s New!

PTF Groups 7.4:

HIPERs (High Impact/Pervasive)
Security
SAP support required PTF list for IBM i 7.4
Memo to Users
What’s New!

PTF Groups 7.3:

HIPERs (High Impact/Pervasive)
Security
SAP support required PTF list for IBM i 7.3
Memo to Users
What’s New!

Tip O’ The Week: As of IBM i 7.5, PSF is available at no charge and is included in the OS license. And, for all releases, if feature code 5114 is installed, customers do not need to install 5112 or 5113. as 5114 supersedes the others. See more at this link.

New (or Updated) links added to the ‘Links’ tab in the guide this week:

TCP/IP: Methods to Change the TCP Servers from Autostarting, 635551

New (or Updated) links added to the ‘QMGtools’ tab in the guide this week:

Nothing

New (or Updated) links added to the ‘ACS_NAV’ tab in the guide this week:

Nothing

New (or Updated) links added to the ‘Prtr Links’ tab in the guide this week:

Nothing

New (or Updated) links Redbooks added this week:

Nothing

The Guide at a glance: There are new defectives this week (10/14/23). Here is the defective PTF rundown, which is the last defective for each release:

	Defect		Defective	APAR	Fixing
	Date		PTF			PTF
	--------	--------	-------	------------------------	
	Defect		Defective	APAR	Fixing
	Date		PTF			PTF
	--------	--------	-------	------------------------	
7.5	10/06/23	SI84569		SE80598	xxxxxxx (When available)
7.4	10/06/23	SI84583		SE80598	xxxxxxx (When available)
7.3	10/06/23	SI84586		SE80598	xxxxxxx (When available)

Be sure to access the link in the Guide for further details.

Below is the usual archive of the IBM i PTF Guide to help you work through the PTFs in chronological order:

October 14, 2023: Volume 25, Number 42

October 7, 2023: Volume 25, Number 41

September 30, 2023: Volume 25, Number 40

September 23, 2023: Volume 25, Number 39

September 16, 2023: Volume 25, Number 38

September 9, 2023: Volume 25, Number 37

September 2, 2023: Volume 25, Number 36

August 26, 2023: Volume 25, Number 35

August 19, 2023: Volume 25, Number 34

August 12, 2023: Volume 25, Number 33