Using Quantum/ADIC iScalar Tape Library

[Rick Dyson]

Does anyone have any experience using an ADIC iScalar 2k or 6k tape library with an Integrity/OpenVMS v8.3-x system? As well as the library also mostly being used by Windows-based Symantec NetBackup servers.

If I am partitioned my own pair of LTO-4 or -5 drives and a subset of magazine slots, would it work the same as, .e.g., an MSL50xx or MSL2024 attached to my SAN via FC? Will it just be $2$MGAx: drives that BACKUP uses seamlessly and MRU can command to move tapes around?

What about ABS?

Thanks!
rick

[Shriniketan Bhagwat]

Hi,

>> If I am partitioned my own pair of LTO-4 or -5 drives

How are you partitioning the tape drives? Are you using the VLS?

>> Will it just be $2$MGAx: drives that BACKUP uses seamlessly and MRU can command to move tapes around?

I have used the VLS 6000, where the LTO tape drives are visible to VMS as MGAx: and BACKUP/MRU can use of these tapes/drives.

Regards,
Ketan

[Rick Dyson]

I personally have no idea about the iScalar. Our Windows backup team uses it and I was asked to see if it was supported and if I could save costs to leverage our existing investment. On the ADIC web site, the only compatibility doc I found did not list OpenVMS anywhere I looked, so I did not have a lot of hope.

I will ask them about "VLS". I know we have an iScalar 2000 but they are looking at a F/W update to make it an iScalar 6000. Marketing in naming? I guess it brings newer drive support, so a nice new model name to call it!

Thanks,
rick

[Rick Dyson]

Ketan,

I asked our backup group about "VLS" and they have no idea what that refers to in context to a Quantum/ADIC iScalar 2000 or 6000 tape library. This is one of the upright freezer-sized boxes with room for hundreds to thousands of slots and dozens of drives. Are we talking about the same hardware?

Rick

[EdgarZamora_1]

I use Quantum Scalar i500 tape libraries with LTO-4 drives for our OpenVMS backups. We share these tape libraries with Windows and unix servers. They are hooked up to the Fibre Channel switches and the drives appear as MGA drives to OpenVMS. I can't tell you whether it will work with MRU and ABS as I use it with HP Data Protector (OpenVMS DP client) on Alphaservers. This combo works fine for me.

Device $2$GGA0:, device type QUANTUM Scalar i500, is online, shareable, device
has multiple I/O paths.

Error count 0 Operations completed 0
Owner process "" Owner UIC [SYSTEM]
Owner process ID 00000000 Dev Prot S:RWPL,O:RWPL,G:RWPL,W:RWPL
Reference count 0 Default buffer size 0
WWID 03100020:"QUANTUM A0C0256229_LLA "

Magtape $2$MGA1: (CLCC), device type IBM ULTRIUM-TD4, is online, file-oriented
device, available to cluster, error logging is enabled, device supports
fastskip (per_io).

Error count 0 Operations completed 0
Owner process "" Owner UIC [SYSTEM]
Owner process ID 00000000 Dev Prot S:RWPL,O:RWPL,G:R,W
Reference count 0 Default buffer size 2048
WWID 02000008:5003-08C0-983F-6000
Density default Format Normal-11
Allocation class 2

Volume status: no-unload on dismount, position lost, odd parity.