From owner-freebsd-scsi Wed Apr 24 19:17:41 1996 Return-Path: owner-freebsd-scsi Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.3/8.7.3) id TAA02473 for freebsd-scsi-outgoing; Wed, 24 Apr 1996 19:17:41 -0700 (PDT) Received: from post.io.org (post.io.org [198.133.36.6]) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.3/8.7.3) with ESMTP id TAA02463 for ; Wed, 24 Apr 1996 19:17:37 -0700 (PDT) Received: from zot.io.org (taob@zot.io.org [198.133.36.82]) by post.io.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) with SMTP id WAA27261; Wed, 24 Apr 1996 22:18:25 -0400 (EDT) Date: Wed, 24 Apr 1996 22:13:21 -0400 (EDT) From: Brian Tao To: FREEBSD-SCSI-L , netbsd-help@netbsd.org Subject: Tape library or DLT support in FreeBSD/NetBSD Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Sender: owner-freebsd-scsi@freebsd.org X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk What options do I have if I'm looking for hardware that will allow me to backup 20 to 30 gigabytes of data unattended? Right now I'm pondering the merits of tape libraries and autoloaders vs. high-end DLT drives. On the one hand, tape changers may require special software support for fully automated operation (I don't think tar/pax/dump will change tapes for you... maybe amanda?), but they use readily available media and provide a migration path from single-unit DAT drives.. On the other hand, DLT is more expensive (both drive hardware and media) and isn't as mature as DDS-2 technology, but it is much faster that DAT and you only have to worry about the software seeing one giant device. Of prime importance is OS support for the unit. :) Has anyone successfully used something like the HP C1553A or the Conner 4586NP autoloaders? I have a script that uses FreeBSD's scsi(8) command to change cartridges on the C1553A, but that still requires some sort of operator intervention. Something like a DLT4000 unit would be great if I can access it through /dev/nrst0 like any other SCSI tape drive. Thanks in advance for any recommendations. -- Brian Tao (BT300, taob@io.org) Systems and Network Administrator, Internex Online Inc. "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't"