General Information For 5.0Gb 8-Mm Tape Drive; Recommendations; Types Of 8-Mm Tape Cartridges - IBM Enterprise Server S80 User Manual

General Information for 5.0GB 8-mm Tape Drive

If your system has a 5.0GB 8-mm tape drive, review the following for recommendations
on care and cleaning of your tape drive.

Recommendations

v Use only Data Grade 8-mm tape cartridges. These cartridges are identified by either
a Data, D, or D8 marking on the data cartridge. Use of video grade cartridges can
damage the 8-mm tape drive and can void the warranty of your 8-mm tape drive, and
data written on these tapes may be lost over a short period of time.
v Remove the tape cartridge from the tape drive when it is not in use, and store the
cartridge in the cartridge case.
v Do not open the door on the data tape cartridge. This door covers and protects the
magnetic tape material from dirt, dust, and damage.
v Avoid touching the tape since this can cause loss of data.
v Keep the tape drive door closed except when loading or unloading a tape cartridge.
v Back up and then discard any tape cartridge that repeatedly produces error
messages. The error information is in the system error log.
v Clean the tape path regularly according to the cleaning procedure of the 8-mm tape
drive. Use only recommended cleaning cartridges; other cleaning cartridges can
permanently damage your 8-mm tape drive.
Attention:
tapes may be unreliable and may cause permanent damage to the 8-mm tape drive.

Types of 8-mm Tape Cartridges

v Test Tape Cartridge: This is a specially labeled tape cartridge that is in the media kit
with the 8-mm tape drive. Use this cartridge only when checking the operation of the
drive or running diagnostics; do not use it to save programs or data.
v Data Tape Cartridge: This is a non-labeled blank tape cartridge that is in the media
kit. Use this cartridge for saving your programs or data. The same data tape
cartridge can be used in either a 2.3GB 8-mm tape drive or a 5.0GB 8-mm tape
drive.
v Cleaning Tape Cartridge: Use this cartridge for cleaning the 8-mm tape path. For
more information, see "Cleaning the Tape Path on the 5.0GB 8-mm Tape Drive" on
page 30.
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S80 and S85 User's Guide
Do not use video grade cartridges in the 8-mm tape drive. Video grade