LTO Media Handling Guide White Paper

HP LTO Media Handling Guide
6/22/2010 10 of 10 628389-001
Media Do’s and Do Not’s
Do

 Store cartridges in their protective cases
 Handle cartridges with great care
 Store cartridges vertically
 Align cartridges so the grooves interlock
 Inspect cartridges prior to each use
 Unload cartridges prior to powering down the drive
 Allow a 24-hour conditioning period to the operating temperature and humidity
before using new or stored cartridges
 Eject media before powering off the drive
 Place labels in the correct location
Do Not

 Touch the media or leader with bare fingers
 Use pens or pencils during cartridge inspection
 Drop cartridge
 Stack cartridges horizontally
 Disassemble cartridges
 Ship cartridges in drive
 Store near magnetic fields (e.g. speakers, monitors, electric motors, power
supplies, etc.)
 Use a cartridge that fell from 3 ft or higher
 Degauss LTO tapes
 Ship the LTO drive with media loaded
 Place labels outside of the supported tape label area (see page 4)