Date: Thu, 22 Jan 1998 14:07:39 +1030 From: Greg Lehey <grog@lemis.com> To: lamaster@george.arc.nasa.gov Cc: freebsd-isp@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: SCSI backup tape drive recommendations (again) Message-ID: <19980122140739.38942@lemis.com> In-Reply-To: <199801212241.OAA01034@george.arc.nasa.gov>; from lamaster@george.arc.nasa.gov on Wed, Jan 21, 1998 at 02:41:51PM -0800 References: <199801212241.OAA01034@george.arc.nasa.gov>
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On Wed, Jan 21, 1998 at 02:41:51PM -0800, lamaster@george.arc.nasa.gov wrote: > > A while back, after inquiring on list or another, I was convinced > that almost any SCSI tape drive would work on FreeBSD using backup. > So, I went shopping, and bought a Conner QIC-Wide (3080XLT tapes, > 2 GB uncompressed, drive supports compression but I have not tried > with FreeBSD) from a surplus/discount place for a steal. > > Sure enough, it works fine. However, at the time, I didn't realize > that the type of tape apparently is an oddball size. Now, the tapes > are very scarce and expensive... > > So, that leads me back to the question of what, if any, *reasonably > priced* SCSI backup tape drives and formats are recommended in the > 2+ GB range. Requirements: restores usually work, moderately > reliable, inexpensive, media relatively inexpensive. I just need > to backup a few GB of irreplaceable stuff reliably and don't want, > need, and can't afford, the really good stuff, e.g. DLT. Probably the cheapest cartridges are DDS (sometimes incorrectly called DAT), followed by Exabyte. DDS drives are cheaper than Exabytes, though. There have been a lot of Archive drives on sale at good prices, but now only refurbished drives have been available. There's nothing to be said against a good refurb unit, but some people have reported that the units they got are not good. Check out http://www.corpsys.com/cgi-bin/select?1130679869093&inventory&T for one supplier ($379 for a 4-tape changer). If you buy one and have trouble, let me know: I have one and have had none, but some people have had problems with refurbs which suggest a defective unit. Greg
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