Trouble with tape drive

Hello.

I have standalone tape drive ( not a library) HP StorageWorks LTO-5 Ultrium 3280 SAS.

For the last 7 days it requested the cleaning cartridge of 5 times.

This tape drive works more than 5 years and writes on a tape for 15 hours every day.

What happened?

The resource of head ended? Or a head so strongly became soiled that the cleaning cartridge helps not for a long time?

1. What to do ?

My backups can't successfully finished.

2. I have another standalone tape drive ( not a library) HP StorageWorks LTO-5 Ultrium 3000 SAS.

Now it isn't connected to my server.

How to step by step to enter this device into operation and to reassign all tape pools on it?

Software Symantec Netbackup Enrerpise version 7.5.0.6 ( Windows 2003 )

Windows Server (2003-2008)

StefanosM
9 years ago
if a tape drive starts to ask for cleaning tape again and again, or the drive has a problem or there is a problematic tape.

If the previous days the same tape was used, change the tape as first troubleshooting step. It is better to test the drive with a new tape.

if you need to change the tape drive, do the following.

write down the density of the faulty drive (hcart or hcart2 or hcart3)

delete the old tape drive from netbackup, and disconnect it from the server

connect the new drive to the server and check that it is viewable from the OS. (install driver if required)

run the device installation wizard from the netbackup GUI and configure the drive to netbackup

check the density of the new drive and, if need it, correct the density to match the density of the faulty drive ( from media and device management -> devices -> drives, right click and select properties).

no other steps needed. Run a backup to test the drive.
sdo
9 years ago
With standalone tape drives you do not have to mount the tape that is requested, instead you can load any tape wihich is writeable - i.e. any tape in the same pool as being requested, of the same retention (assuming mixed retentions is not enabled), which still has space, which is not write-locked - or instead is a scratch tape from the ScratchPool.

If you want A00006 to cease being requested, then just delete volume A00006, or create a new pool named 'BadMedia' and manually assign A00006 to the 'BadMedia' pool.

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Michael_G_Ander
Level 6
9 years ago
1. The best option is to get the supplier to look at this drive.

2. Follow the steps in the suppliers installation guide and then in the netbackup device configuration guide. Don't think you need to move the tapes as both drive are stand-alone.
StefanosM
Level 6
9 years ago
if a tape drive starts to ask for cleaning tape again and again, or the drive has a problem or there is a problematic tape.

If the previous days the same tape was used, change the tape as first troubleshooting step. It is better to test the drive with a new tape.

if you need to change the tape drive, do the following.

write down the density of the faulty drive (hcart or hcart2 or hcart3)

delete the old tape drive from netbackup, and disconnect it from the server

connect the new drive to the server and check that it is viewable from the OS. (install driver if required)

run the device installation wizard from the netbackup GUI and configure the drive to netbackup

check the density of the new drive and, if need it, correct the density to match the density of the faulty drive ( from media and device management -> devices -> drives, right click and select properties).

no other steps needed. Run a backup to test the drive.
mph999
Level 6
9 years ago
In a nutshell, I strongly suspect your tape drive heads have worn out ...
ipmanyak
Level 5
9 years ago
Is there somewhere information about a resource of heads of streamers ? I found nothing in Google.
Marianne
Level 6
9 years ago
I doubt that this type of detail will be available on the Internet. If you can get hold of a maintenance manual for this make/model tape drive. But what would you want to do with it unless you have received training to service /fix tape drives? Fixing tape drives is not a DIY job.
StefanosM
Level 6
9 years ago
have you done a "deep cleaning"?

Deep cleaning is to clean your drive 3 times, one after the other. Try it
ipmanyak
Level 5
9 years ago
Service on repair of streamers told me: "The head has a resource about 5 years, loses degaussing as the cleaning tape doesn't clean it, and degausses!"

This is true?
ipmanyak
Level 5
9 years ago
> Deep cleaning is to clean your drive 3 times, one after the other.

ok. I try it tomorrow .

But if head has a resource about 5 years and tape doesn't clean it, and degausses then it does not help.
StefanosM
Level 6
9 years ago
I'm working with tapes for more than 15 years and what I know is that tape drive heads are electromagnetic heads. The drive use electricity to write to and read from the tape. There is no such thing as degaussing a tape drive.

On the other hand you can ruin a tape by degaussing it.

I suspect that what the engineer told you is that often cleaning a tape drive can damage the drive. which is not often but true.
Genericus
Moderator
9 years ago
Stupid question - did you check your cleaning tape?

They have a maximum uses, if it is at maximum, it never ran the clean, so it just asks again....

I have LTO5 drives and they have worn faster than normal, the clue I see is that as the head wears they generate write errors, and the drives counts read/write errors and requests cleaning after so many errors within 24 hours.

I track the cleaning requests - mine should be about every two weeks.

The bad thing is that cleaning tapes are abrasive and make the head wear worse, so as the heads go bad, they clean more, that makes them more worn, and they spiral down to oblivion.

When I see more than 3 or 4 in a month, I have my tape vendor test the drive, it fails and they replace it.