RP5430 (L-1000) adding an external tape drive

[Dee_3]

RP5430 currently has an internal DDS-3 DAT
drive (12gb).
Is it possible to add an external tape drive
to this system, and if so, what needs to
be done to do this?

[timmy b. · Accepted solution]

Dee, the L class has a SCSI connection built in to the Guardian Service Processor. Look at the bottom slot at the rear of the server, it has a network connection to the left and a VHDCI connection on the right. This right side connector is what you would use to connect to an external device. It is commonly used for external tape and cdrom drives. The older style that HP used was called a Smart Enclosure, this was a rack mounted box that the removable media drive was inserted into. There was also the option of just using a desktop model of drive, if you didn't want to use the racked enclosure. Today they sell the Tape Array 5300 enclosure and it's associated drives. (The Smart Enclosure drives do not work in a TA5300, and vice versa.)

Here is a like to the L class manual: http://docs.hp.com/en/A5191-96018/A5191-96018.pdf

I hope this helps.

Good Luck - Tim

[Jesse Dougherty]

Hi Dee, its a real easy to attach a second DDS-3 DAT to your box, here is the quickest and cheapest fix that I can think of:

Use a desk-top Smart DDS-3 DAT with a SCSI cable and attach it to your Ultra-2 SCSI port on the back of the RP box. You'll need the below hardware to do this: its about a $400.00 set-up and you can probably find it on ebay. If the port is taken by another device you need to get a A5149A Ultra-2 SCSI card and they usually run about 200 bucks

1. C6364A HP Smart DDS-3 DAT Drive w/ terminator
1. 68-pin VHD cable to 68-pin HD cable
1. power cord

Hope this helps

Jesse
Cypress Technology Inc