backup problems

[Etienne Roseau]

hello !
i'm unable to understand the following message that has appeared since last week, in the backup during the daily batch process.
"can't open /dev/tty to prompt for more media.
save XXXX on DAT NOT OK"
to help, this message appears at the end of the cpio -ocvB
thanks for help.
E.

[Mark Grant]

Not a big cpio user but my guess would be that the command is being run in the background (hence can't write to the tty) and that you have filled up the tape.

Might be wrong though.

[Etienne Roseau]

hi Mark,
i would like it is the answer, but nobody had changed the way i do my backups during the batch for monthes, and that's why i don't understand this error that never appears before.

[Chris Wilshaw]

The message

"can't open /dev/tty to prompt for more media."

indicates that for some reason, your backup needs a second tape.

This can be due to

1) Too much data for one tape
2) Faulty tape
3) Tape drive needs cleaning

Solutions:

1) Try a larger tape (if your drive will support it)
2) Try a new tape
3) Clean the drive

It's also possible (but unlikely given this error message) that the drive itself is faulty, in which case you'll need to get HP to swap it out.

[Mark Grant]

Is it possible that only now, you have enough data to fill up the tape whereas you didn't before?

[Etienne Roseau]

thanks Chris,
The tape drive is cleaned each monday, since now the tapes were long enough and as the cpio tells me "end of volume" when the tape is not long enough, you may be right: my drive is dying !!
but for some reasons, it's 1 or 2 backups (upon 3) that are affected each night and not all of them ???

[Mark Grant]

I bet you have an enormous file somehere that has recently been created or a log file that has grown too large.

[Etienne Roseau]

that's what i'm looking for, before calling HP about the drive ;-)
thanks for helping