HP A3716A DDS-3 Autoloader User's Manual - 3716-96001
Care of Cartridges and Drive
Caring for Cartridges
6-6
Caring for Cartridges
Maximizing Tape Life
We recommend that you use only Hewlett-Packard DDS Media Recognition
System cartridges. These conform to HPs high standards for ensuring data
integrity.
Under optimum environmental conditions, Hewlett-Packard DDS cartridges
are currently specified to 2000 passes over any part of the tape. In operational
terms, this can be translated to 200300 backup operations.
Under severe environmental conditions, where the tape drive is used at the low
end of the humidity specification, or if certain areas of the tape are accessed
frequently, limit the number of backup operations for each cartridge to around
100.
To maximize tape life:
n Do not touch the tape.
n Do not attempt to clean the tape path or tape guides inside the cartridge.
n Do not leave cartridge tapes in excessively dry or humid conditions.
n Do not leave tapes in direct sunlight or in places where magnetic fields are
present (for example, under telephones, next to monitors or near
transformers).
n Do not drop cartridges or handle them roughly.
n Do not stick more than one label onto a cartridge; extra labels could cause
the cartridge to jam in the tape drive.
n Always store cartridges in a magazine or in their plastic cases when not in
use. Store the magazine in its plastic case.
n Always keep the cartridges in a clean environment.
n Do not use cartridges beyond their useful life, indicated by a Worn Media
message on the front panel or by messages from backup software that
supports the autoloaders TapeAlert facility.
Storing Cartridges
If possible, store cartridges as follows:
n Protection: In a magazine inside its plastic case, or in the cartridges
individual plastic case.