Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!njin!princeton!pucc!AUXPOST From: MATLEVAN@EKU.BITNET (Jerry LeVan) Newsgroups: comp.unix.aux Subject: MultiTape Tar files Message-ID: Date: 3 Sep 90 19:55:00 GMT Sender: VMNNPOST@pucc.Princeton.EDU (Listserv to Netnews Gateway) Organization: Listserv to Netnews Gateway at pucc.Princeton.EDU Lines: 47 Approved: AUXPOST@PUCC hello netters, There appears to be some obscurity in the tar documentation (online). I wanted to backup my X11 source and binaries. They are currently living on an HD80 (a single aux partion for the whole disk). When I tried tar<~k> to get the commando help I generated a command line: tar cvlbBf 16 4500 /dev/rmt/tc1 . The resulting execution would write only about 150 files to the tape and call for another "disk". After about 3 tapes were quickly called for I realized that something was obviously wrong I though perhaps there was a blocking problem so I tried: tar cvlbB 16 4500 - | tcb > /dev/rmt/tc1 Same problem. The online man page for tar claims that the B option is the size of the device in 512 byte blocks, so I am trying the following tar cvlBf 72000 - | tcb > /dev/rmt/tc1 This seems to be putting many more files on the tape and the program has just asked for another tape... Hmmm...That was quick the second tape only had 7 files with about 200 (512 byte blocks) written when tcb croaked with an I/O error. Sigh...Is there a definitive technique for creating a multitape tar /cpio archive (and of course restoration)? Can anyone think of any reason that using system utilities needs to be an experimental science? Jerry ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Jerry LeVan | Phone:(606)-622-1931 | | Department of Computer Science | | | Eastern Kentucky University | Email:matlevan@eku.bitnet | | Richmond Ky 40475 | | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------| | "The series converges so slowly that it actually diverges." | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------