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Ultrium tape format
Cartridge memory
Despite its ultra-high capacity, the Ultrium cartridge is thinner than other existing
single-reel cartridges. It measures about 4 inches square and is a little more than 3/4
of an inch thick.
The data on the tape can be protected by a manual switch on the front of the
cartridge, as well as by the cartridge memory (see below). The manual switch can be
set to write protect.
As shown in Figure 19, there is a door on the upper right side of the cartridge. When
the drive is into the drive, the drive opens this door to expose the leader pin that is
attached to the beginning of the tape.
Caution.
Do not open the tape door manually, or you may allow dust to enter the
cartridge, which could result in loss of data.
Door (open)
Pin
Figure 19. LTO cartridge with door open to show leader pin.
To maximize data access speed and efficiency, every LTO cartridge contains a
Cartridge Memory (CM) chip, which communicates with the drive via a contactless
radio-frequency link. The cartridge has 4 Kbytes of memory: 3 Kbytes are used to
store tape directory and hardware specific information and 1 Kbyte is available for
application and OEM use.
The cartridge memory is powered, read, and written to via radio-frequency link (non-
contact).
The drive will not write to a cartridge whose CM is faulty or whose CM (or manual
switch) is set to write protect.
The information stored in the CM includes the following:
•
Cartridge type
•
Unique cartridge serial number
•
Cartridge manufacturer
•
Date of manufacture
•
Tape length
45
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