Help on Tape Stacker

[dashinghawk]

Please let me know how to handle stacker or loader or stacker device so that to load different tapes from stacker into tape drive. i am using 3480 Fujitsu tape drive.
i want to load tapes from loader or stacker at run time.
i used CreateFile and OpenFile apis to open tape hanlde and stacker handle. I got the tape handle but could not succeed to get loader or stacker handle.
i am using ASPI APIs but dont have any idea how to initilaize tape stacker device and what command to sent it so that it load and unload cartridges tapes into tape drive.
Please give me some programming tips in c++ or VC++, if possible
I will be really thankful of your courtesy and ,kind response.

[Michael Lampi]

While I do not have any code fragments for you, you could first try checking at what SCSI address the stacker robot is located.

For example, the HP 6 tape autoloader has the robot address at the same SCSI ID as the drive, but uses SCSI LUN 1. The drive uses SCSI LUN 0.

Most other robots use a different SCSI ID rather than a different SCSI LUN.

Also, make sure that your SCSI board is configured (using the BIOS) to enable LUN addressing. Some boards have this feature disabled by default.

Lastly, you should check with the stacker manufacturer (Fujitsu, I would presume, or possibly Storage Tek), and get the SCSI command specification manuals. These *should* follow the SCSI standard, but stacker manufacturers have been known to take liberties from time to time.

[dashinghawk]

Sir,
Thanks for your reply.

i have already queried about all possible scsi devices which can be installed on my system.
si it provide me like with following information for FUJITSU tape drive.

SCSI Tape Drive ID = 5
LUN for tape is =1
SCSI bus=0
SCSI Host Adapter=1

But there is no hint for stacker or autoloader.
I mean i sent some command to load unload cartridges from stacker being mounted on Fujitsu tape drive..like at this address,

1:Tape Target Id=5(same as above)
2: Host Adapter=1(same as above)
3: LUN=1 or 2 or 3 etc.

So i tried different LUN for stacker mounted on tape driev. But it did not work.
I am getting status message from command as;
"No SCSI device found on mentioned LUN".

SO please guide me to solve this problem.

Secondly i have another question to be answered please ?????

i have a Tape cartridge in which there are, for instance, some data stored in following manner.

1:there are 3 files in the cartridge.
2: each file have different number of blocks
for example, file 1 have 50 blocks . file 2 have 60 blocks and so on.

Now probelm is that, i want to read data in blocks.
for example first bock 1 in file 1.
than block 2 of same file 1 and son on.
currently i am using ReadFile and other ASPI apis to read data and they are working fine. But they are not keeping track of blocks .
they reads data according to the input buffer size which user provides to them.
So please help me in this scenario too ..

best regards

[Christopher Lewis_1]

Hi,

I am having the same problem. Were you able to figure out how to move to the next tape? I tried using \\.\Tape0 and then \\.\Tape1. That did not work. I would appreciate any help.

Regards,

Chris