3.6 Cleaning the Tape Drive
Clean the 7208 Tape Drive:
After you use a metal particle (MP) tape, such as a 112-meter tape, a 160-meter tape, or all tapes that were compatible with previous
8mm drives
After a maximum of 72 hours of tape motion
You must clean the tape drive after using MP media. If you use advanced metal-evaporated (AME) media after using MP media, the LCD
prompts you to clean the tape drive by displaying the message
MUST CLEAN
.
The 7208 Tape Drive counts the number of hours of tape motion and indicates when it is time to clean the tape drive by displaying the
message
CLEAN SOON
and turning on the Fault status light.
To clean the tape drive, use only the IBM 8mm Cleaning Cartridge (part number 59H2898). For uninterrupted operation, have one or more
spare cleaning cartridges available.
Attention:
Do not operate the 7208 Tape Drive Model 342 in a poor air-quality environment. If your environment contains an excessive
amount of particulates, they may permanently damage the media, the drive, or both. Contact your service representative for more
information.
To load the cleaning cartridge:
1. Make sure that the 7208 Tape Drive power is on and the Power-On Self Test has completed.
2. Grasp the cleaning cartridge by the outer edges, with the window side up and the write-protect switch facing you (refer to Figure 10 in
topic 3.5.1).
3. Slide the cartridge into the opening on the front of the 7208 Tape Drive until the loading mechanism pulls the cartridge into the drive and
the drive door closes.
After the cleaning cartridge has been fully inserted into the 7208 Tape Drive, the remainder of the cleaning process is automatic. The
7208 Tape Drive:
1. Loads the cleaning tape into the tape drive
2. Turns on the Fault status light (if the light is off)
3. Cleans the drive by moving the cleaning tape forward for approximately two minutes (the Fault status light comes on and the message
CLEANING
displays)
4. Unloads and ejects the cleaning tape when the cleaning operation is complete
The cleaning cartridge can be used for a minimum of 18 cleaning operations. If you attempt to use the depleted cartridge, the 7208 Tape
Drive automatically detects the error, ejects the cartridge, and displays the message
DEPLETED
. The Fault status light remains on to
indicate that cleaning is still required. Replace the depleted cartridge with a new cleaning cartridge.
7208 Tape Drive Setup and Operator Guide
Cleaning the Tape Drive
¦ Copyright IBM Corp. 1998
3.6 - 1
