Default tar device file

[Roberto Volsa]

Hello,
i would like to know how to change the default device used by tar command (2m instead of 0m).

Thanks in advance
BR

[melvyn burnard]

us the f option or key to supply the destination file, as in:

tar -f /dev/rmt/2m

[Eric Antunes]

Hi Roberto,

ioscan will tell you what you archive file you can use:

#ioscan -fnCtape

Best Regards,

Eric Antunes

[Roberto Volsa]

Hello,
my concern is avoiding adding "-f /dev/rmt/2m" ant each tar execution.

BR

[Pete Randall]

Do you have a device at 0m? If not, you could simply create a link from 0m to 2m. You could also create a new device file (see the attached method).


Pete

[Eric Antunes]

Hi,

By default, tar uses /dev/rmt/0m. So:

#tar cv

will use /dev/rmt/0m

Eric

[Bill Hassell]

There is no way to change tar's behavior. /dev/rmt/0m is hardcoded into the program. However, I would never run tar without explicitly using the full devicefile path (ie, -f option) simply because assuming defaults are always the same can cause lots of problems (such as overwriting the wrong tape). Similarly, linking device files can lead to mistakes when sysadmins forget or don't know about the link.

[baiju_3]

Ya ,I understood your Q.

In HP 0m is the default.

In other Unix like SCO unix ,U can change the default tape drive in /etc/defalt/tar
file .

This way it will not work in HP.

what you can do is ,if there is no H/W available in 0m and 1m path remove the
device files by rmsf and do a reboot or rcreate the /dev/rmt/0m dev file with the major and monor number of /dev/rmt/2m file.

Or go for a reboot .

Should work ,
Thanks,
BL.

[RolandH]

Switch the tape device so the /dev/rmt/1m becomes /dev/rmt/0m and
the /dev/rmt/0m becomes /dev/rmt1m
--------------------------------------------------------
Run the following ioscan command to get the Hardware Path:
#ioscan -kf | grep -e INTERFACE -e DEVICE | grep -v target | awk '{printf "%s %
s %s\n",$3,$1,$2}'
8/0/0 tty 0
8/4 ext_bus 0
8/4.5.0 disk 0
8/4.7.0 ctl 0
8/4.8.0 disk 1
8/4.9.0 disk 2
8/4.10.0 disk 3
8/4.11.0 disk 4
8/4.12.0 disk 5
8/4.13.0 disk 6
8/4.14.0 disk 7
8/4.15.0 disk 8
8/16/0 ext_bus 2
8/16/1 pc 0
8/16/1.1 floppy 0
8/16/5 ext_bus 5
8/16/5.0.0 tape 0 <------ Here
8/16/5.2.0 disk 9
8/16/5.7.0 ctl 1
8/16/6 lan 0
8/16/7 ps2 0
8/20/2 tty 1
8/18/3.0.0 tape 1 <----- Here

#vi /tmp/infile
8/16/5.0.0 tape 1
8/18/3.0.0 tape 0

#ioinit -f /tmp/infile -r <----- This will cause a reboot

Note: Again, it might be necessary to remove the old device files with
the "rmsf" command and then re-create the device files with "insf -e".

Roland