IBM System Storage TS2900, Setup, Operator, And Service Manual

Page: 117 / 257

Chapter 5. Media
5-3
The insertion guide is a large, notched area that prevents the cartridge from being
inserted incorrectly.
Generation 3 and 4 of the LTO Ultrium Data Cartridge have a nominal cartridge life
of 20,000 (20k) load and unload cycles. Generation 2 has a nominal cartridge life of
10,000 (10k) load and unload cycles. Generation 1 of the LTO Ultrium Data Cartridge
has a nominal cartridge life of 5000 (5k) load and unload cycles.
Cartridge Compatibility
Note: The TS2900 Tape Autoloader supports the Ultrium 3 (3572-3SH) and Ultrium 4
(3572-4SH) Tape Drives only.
Capacity Scaling
To control the capacity of the cartridge (for example, to obtain a faster seek time) issue
the SCSI command SET CAPACITY. For information about this command, refer to the
IBM TotalStorage LTO Ultrium Tape Drive SCSI Reference .
WORM (Write Once, Read Many)
Certain records retention and data security applications require a Write Once, Read
Many (WORM) method for storing data on tape. The LTO Ultrium generation 4 drive
enables WORM support when a WORM tape cartridge is loaded into the drive.
WORM Media
Because standard read/write media are incompatible with the WORM feature, a
specially formatted WORM tape cartridge (see Figure 5-2) is required. Each WORM
cartridge has a unique, worldwide cartridge identifier (WWCID), which comprises
the unique CM chip serial number and the unique tape media serial number. Ultrium
4 WORM cartridges are two-tone green and silvery-gray. See “Ordering Media
Supplies” on page 5-19 for information on how to choose and purchase the
appropriate WORM tape cartridges for your library.
6
Table 5-3. Ultrium data and cleaning cartridge compatibility with Ultrium tape drive
IBM Ultrium
Tape Drive
IBM LTO Ultrium Data Cartridges
800 GB
(Ultrium 4)
400 GB
(Ultrium 3)
200GB
(Ultrium 2)
100GB
(Ultrium 1)
Ultrium 4 Read/Write Read/Write Read only
Ultrium 3 Read/Write Read/Write Read only
Ultrium 2 Read/Write Read/Write
Ultrium 1 Read/Write