Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!hplabs!hpl-opus!jewett
From: jewett@hpl-opus.HP.COM (Bob Jewett)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.hp
Subject: Re: HP9144 cartridge tape drive doesn't stream with HP tape
Message-ID: <63300006@hpl-opus.HP.COM>
Date: 14 Jun 89 19:45:49 GMT
References: <234@rdahp.UUCP>
Organization: HP Labs, High Speed Electronics Dept., Palo Alto, CA
Lines: 17

> I have never seen a re-certify (mediainit -r) take over an hour on an HP-
> supplied tape.  The behaviour you describe suggests a defective tape.  The
> extra two hours is due to excessive sparing of bad blocks.

We have also seen several tapes that were very slow.  The problem seems
to be confined to certain date codes.  On the back of the tape (usually
in dark blue ink) is the date code, which starts something like:

    5A832
      ^^^
      YWW  (year and week)

The bad range is week 32 through week 43 of year 8 (1988).  The symptom is
that data takes MUCH longer to record.  I check our tapes in that date range
by timing the write of a one meg file.

Bob Jewett