SDLT Tape formats?

I just received a new case of tapes from Quantum for our SDLT 220 drive
and they are all giving me troubles:

[root@rocky backup]# mt setdensity 145

[root@rocky backup]# tar cvSbf 1024 /dev/tape /usr2
/bin/tar: Removing leading `/' from member names
/bin/tar: /dev/tape: Wrote only 0 of 524288 bytes
/bin/tar: Error is not recoverable: exiting now

[root@rocky backup]# mt tell
At block 0.

[root@rocky backup]# mt status
SCSI 2 tape drive:
File number=0, block number=0, partition=0.
Tape block size 0 bytes. Density code 0x91 (no translation).
Soft error count since last status=0
General status bits on (49010000):
BOT EOD ONLINE IM_REP_EN

I'm able to do the same thing with my older (Quantum also) tapes with no
problems at all.

The new tapes are marked as SuperDLTtape 1 byt they also say 160/320 GB
and then in smaller print 110/220 GB. I'm assuming the tapes haven't
changed just the packaging.

Is this just a bad batch of tapes or is something else going on? Has
something changed in the tapes that makes me need to do something to get
them to work in an SDLT 220 drive? If it matters I'm running Redhat 7.3
with the 2.4.20-18.7smp kernel.

Thanks,

Steve
__________________________________________________ ___________
Steve Cousins Email:
Research Associate Phone: (207) 581-4302
Ocean Modeling Group
School of Marine Sciences 208 Libby Hall
University of Maine Orono, Maine 04469

I still don't know what the problem is with these tapes but I do have a
solution. By doing "mt erase" it will make these tapes usable. Is this
what we have to do now in order to get new SDLT 1 tapes to work in an SDLT
220 drive?

If so, they really shouldn't call them the same things. Someone previously
mentioned that maybe they should be called SDLT 1.5 tapes. I agree. What a
pain. I guess you have to specify "SDLT 220 specific SDLT 1 tapes please"
(if they even exist any more) in order to not have to spend two days
reformating the damned things.

Oh well. I guess if this is the worst of my problems right now I should
count myself lucky.

Steve


Steve Cousins wrote:

I just received a new case of tapes from Quantum for our SDLT 220 drive
and they are all giving me troubles:

[root@rocky backup]# mt setdensity 145

[root@rocky backup]# tar cvSbf 1024 /dev/tape /usr2
/bin/tar: Removing leading `/' from member names
/bin/tar: /dev/tape: Wrote only 0 of 524288 bytes
/bin/tar: Error is not recoverable: exiting now

[root@rocky backup]# mt tell
At block 0.

[root@rocky backup]# mt status
SCSI 2 tape drive:
File number=0, block number=0, partition=0.
Tape block size 0 bytes. Density code 0x91 (no translation).
Soft error count since last status=0
General status bits on (49010000):
BOT EOD ONLINE IM_REP_EN

I'm able to do the same thing with my older (Quantum also) tapes with no
problems at all.

The new tapes are marked as SuperDLTtape 1 byt they also say 160/320 GB
and then in smaller print 110/220 GB. I'm assuming the tapes haven't
changed just the packaging.

Is this just a bad batch of tapes or is something else going on? Has
something changed in the tapes that makes me need to do something to get
them to work in an SDLT 220 drive? If it matters I'm running Redhat 7.3
with the 2.4.20-18.7smp kernel.

Thanks,

Steve
__________________________________________________ ___________
Steve Cousins Email:
Research Associate Phone: (207) 581-4302
Ocean Modeling Group
School of Marine Sciences 208 Libby Hall
University of Maine Orono, Maine 04469