IBM 4690 Cassette Player User Manual


 
Chapter 1. Overview
The operating system provides support for the following tape drives:
v EIDE Internal
v SCSI Internal
v SCSI External
Refer to the IBM 4690 OS V2: User’s Guide for more information on using the
Streaming Tape Drive Utility.
The following table shows the tape drives supported.
Name Manufacturer Model Number Part Number
IBM 4.0/8.0GB TR4 Internal
EIDE Tape Drive
Options by IBM 2359 06H9720
Seagate ATAPI TapeStor
8000
Seagate Technologies,
Inc.
TST8000R-ABET
IBM TR-4 4.0/8.0 GB
Internal SCSI Tape Drive
Options by IBM 06H9716
IBM TR-4 4.0/8.0 GB
External SCSI Tape Drive
Options by IBM 3502-900
TapeStor 8000 TR-4 4-8 GB
Internal SCSI Tape Drive
Seagate Technologies,
Inc.
TST8000R-SBET
TapeStore 8000 TR-4 4-8 GB
External SCSI Tape Drive
Seagate Technologies,
Inc.
TST8000E-SBET
Tape Capacity
A Travan TR-4 cartridge can store up to 4 GB of uncompressed data.
However, the actual capacity per cartridge varies according to the number
and size of the files to be stored. Because the Travan TR-4 cartridge is
designed to store data from an entire hard disk, under normal conditions
you should not need to insert a second tape. The large storage capacity
allows the tape drive to be used in unattended mode (Remote Command
Processor), which is a significant advantage over tape drives that have
smaller capacities and require user intervention to change tapes.
Low cost
Because only one cartridge is needed for most system backups, you save
on tape cartridge cost. One Travan TR-4 cartridge may be cheaper than
multiple smaller capacity tapes.
High Speed Data Transfer
The tape drive is capable of transferring raw data at 600 KB per second.
Part of this data, Error Correction Code (ECC) data, is used to recover
from read errors. The resulting throughput should be about 30 MB per
minute when the tape drive is able to maintain streaming.
Buffered Data to Maintain Streaming
The tape drive’s RAM allows buffering of data in the hardware. The
software in the Store Controller also has a buffer. With buffering in the
hardware and the software, the number of underruns should be reduced.
© Copyright IBM Corp. 1998 1