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From: aland@informix.com (alan denney)
Newsgroups: comp.periphs,comp.unix.questions,comp.unix.sysv386
Subject: Re: Reading/writing IBM 9 track tapes under UNIX
Summary: IBM standard mag tape labels
Message-ID: <1990Oct3.205556.16183@informix.com>
Date: 3 Oct 90 20:55:56 GMT
References: <1990Oct1.174354.22980@nimbus3.uucp>
Sender: news@informix.com (Usenet News)
Organization: INFORMIX Professional Services ("Peace thru Normalization")
Lines: 43

In article <1990Oct1.174354.22980@nimbus3.uucp> djs@nimbus3.UUCP (Doug) writes:
>We have a 9 track tape drive made by Qualstar.  It is attached to a 386
>PC running System V Release 3.2.2.  We have been given a 9 track tape
>written on an IBM 3090 in something called "IBM Labeled" format.  It also
>says LRECL=1024 and BLKSIZE=1024 on the label.  No combination of dd
>options produced meaningful input.  Does anyone know how to read/write
>these tapes under UNIX?
>
>Thanks for any help!
>Doug Scofea   Email: nimbus3!djs@cis.ohio-state.edu    Phone:+1 614 459-1889

If this was produced in an MVS environment, the actual data should
begin on the *fourth* physical file (after three TAPE MARKS).
VM may be the same.

IBM standard labeled tape files look like this, file-wise:

VOL1    (volume serial label)
HDR1    (file header part 1)
HDR2    (file header part 2)
<data file 1>
EOF
HDR1    (file header part 1)
HDR2    (file header part 2)
<data file 2>
EOF
...
EOV ? (end of tape marker)

You probably need to use files=3 and conv=ascii as well.
The record length, block size, and recording format (LRECL,BLKSIZE,
RECFM) will appear on the HDR1 file, if you know how to parse it.

Hope this helps.

--
Alan Denney  #  aland@informix.com  #  {pyramid|uunet}!infmx!aland

 "Out on the highway doing 98... radio's blastin', and he's tempting fate
  He swears he saw an angel in a black Corvette
  She was blowing him kisses through her cigarette
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                                "Boy's Gone Crazy", Was (Not Was)