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Working remotely and tapes are stuck

Gonzouk
Level 4

Hello,

I'm using Back up exec 2010R3 to restore files from LTO4 tapes, the tape drive is HP and has 2 drives and the management access is not setup and I'm workign remotely.  I had to cancel 2 jobs and they were still cancelling 2 hours later so I remotely restarted the Backup Exec server.  Now it has rebooted the tapes are still in the drives and I can get them out as I can remotely reboot the tape drive, do I have an other options to move the tapes out?

 

Thanks

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Accepted Solutions

pkh
Moderator
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Unfortunately, no.   There is no way to remove the tapes from the tape drives using BE.  You would have to use the Web UI access to the library to do the operation.

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13 REPLIES 13

pkh
Moderator
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Unfortunately, no.   There is no way to remove the tapes from the tape drives using BE.  You would have to use the Web UI access to the library to do the operation.

RahulG
Level 6
Employee

The only thing which you can do would be unloack the library from the backup exec console or simply stop the backup exec services and tell someone on site to remove the tapes manaully ..

pkh
Moderator
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If you have used a tape library, you would know that there is no way to manually remove a tape from a tape drive in a tape library.

RahulG
Level 6
Employee

pkh if the Tape is stuck in the drive you have to manually remove it. The door of the library can only be opened when be unlocks it or when the Be services are stopped .You may have much experience working with a tape library but that is common sense.

pkh
Moderator
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If the tape is stuck in the tape drive in a library, you cannot even reach it with your hand, much less remove it.  The tape could also be in an unwound state and removing it by hand would damage the tape.

RahulG
Level 6
Employee

If the tape is stuck, you cannot even remove it using the library interface. The web UI will also not allow you to eject the tape or remove it .

Kiran_Bandi
Level 6
Partner Accredited

Just to share my experience...

I have the experience of working with a problamatic library for more than two months continuously with two of the enterprise backup softwares. in my case tape got strucked after getting ejected form the drive, you can say half way out. It was a robot failure and robot was unable to move the tape from drive to slot. I have to poweroff the library remove the tape drive form the library, take out the tape and install the drive. Because even a restart of the library didn't moved the tape into slot from drive.

Regards....

pkh
Moderator
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Sigh!!! You just won't quit!

A tape could be stuck in the tape drive because an application does not have a chance to send the command to the library to unload the drive and move the tape to a slot.  All the library needs is for something to tell it to do so.  BE cannot do it because the BE interface does not have the full range of library functions.  The library's Web UI has the full range of library function and can use used to send the unload command.

Please do not comment on things which you have no experience with.

pkh
Moderator
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This is a hardware fault, probably the robot arm is faulty. Either the tape library and/or the tape drive needs to be replaced.  If the tape is not wound up properly, removing it forcibly from the tape drive would damage it and the drive mechanism.

In the OP's case, it looks more like a "logical" stuck.  The tape is stuck in the library because BE services was re-started and BE does not have the chance to unload the tape.

Kiran_Bandi
Level 6
Partner Accredited

Maybe...

But if he is unable to unload it from drive either through BE or web UI, then i don't think there is an option other than removing the drive and taking the tape out. But as you said, this will happen only if there is a hardware failure.

If it is a logical stuck no need of removing tape manually....

pkh
Moderator
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If there is a hardware fault/failure, it is better to get the vendor in to remove the tape from the tape drive.  Removing the tape from the tape drive yourself and damaging the drive may void the warranty.

Kiran_Bandi
Level 6
Partner Accredited

Agreeed....

CraigV
Moderator
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Partner    VIP    Accredited

...well, you CAN turn the library off and remove the SCSI to get an unlock of the library. However, simply opening a library isn't as easy as that. Like pkh said, warranties are void if you are not certified for this, and there is always the chance that someone can break the library further if they don't have a clue what they are doing.

I have extensive experience with tape libraries in a variety of locations outside of my country in Africa and Asia...relying on someone who doesn't know what they're doing only ends up in things breaking further.

Since it falls outside of Symantec, I'd suggest you tell the OP to rather get hold of the hardware vendor to remove the tape if the library is still under warranty. It's best to rather stick to solving the BE-side of things.

 

PS: This isn't an attack on anybody, so please don't -1 me wink