Inventory shows drive empty

[andy_osborn]

Hello.

I have multiple clients with this issue (different versions, including 11d and 12) I've noticed over the past year or so. It's random so I ignore it but this one client wants it fixed.

They're running BE 10.0. We have 2 jobs at all these clients. 1 is an inventory which happens 15 minutes before the nightly backup.

Randomly, on different nights, with different tapes, the inventory will say successful and looking at the log it shows the drive is empty. The client says every morning they replace the tape. The subsequent backup then fails after a few hours because it is looking for a tape.

The next morning they say usually the tape is ejected. They put the tape back in, I do a manual inventory and rerun the backup job on the same tape and it works fine.

It appears the tape is ejecting itself. I've asked the client to check every night before they leave (before the backup runs) to see if the tape is in the drive and they say it is. So it appears to happen during or right before the inventory.

We use only Sony AIT drives although we have different models. This one happens to be a SDX-500V. We're using the Veritas drivers.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[Ken_Putnam]

Anything in the job logs or Event Viewer/Application logs?

Almost sounds like maybe the inventory is successful, but when the job runs, it doesn't like the tape, so ejects it, and then times out.  Try setting the Overwrite Protection down by one day for that media set

Unless you are a confirmed "Don't mess with a running  machine" kinda guy, just on GP, I'd suggest the free upgrade to v10.1

Go to the product download page at 

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/downloads.jsp?pid=15047

Filter for v10d(v10.1) and Install/Patch/Driver

[andy_osborn]

Ken,

Thanks for the reply.

The Application log is fairly standard. It only shows an informational record which says:

Backup Exec Alert: Media Insert

(Server: "SERVER1") (Job: "Nightly Full") Please insert overwritable media into the drive.

Then an error 5 min later which says:

Backup Exec Alert: Job Cancellation

(Server: "SERVER1") (Job: "Nightly Full") The job was canceled by user System.

 I do have a auto repsond to the media insert alert to reply after 5 min.

The invenotry job itself is successfully and if I go to the job log results it says:

Status: Empty

So before or during the inventory it ejects or isn't recognized. It happens with new tapes and the odd thing is that the next morning I can insert the tape again and rerun the same inventory/backup job and it works fine.

Thanks!

[Ken_Putnam]

I've never heard of an Inventory ejecting the tape, but BackupExec will eject a tape if the job is an Overwrite job and the mounted tape is not overwriteable.

have you tried running the scheduled inventory job before you go home for the evening?  What does it show?  If the info displays in Black, the tape is write protected, if in Blue, it is overwriteable