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From: jfh@killer.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: Problems Backing Up Large Filesystems to Tape
Message-ID: <721@killer.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 1-Apr-87 16:36:18 EST
Article-I.D.: killer.721
Posted: Wed Apr  1 16:36:18 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 4-Apr-87 20:13:04 EST
References: <5440@brl-adm.ARPA>
Organization: The Unix(tm) Connection, Dallas, Texas
Lines: 27
Summary: Try using DD(1) (Remember that one...)

In article <5440@brl-adm.ARPA>, chrisb@ALMSA-1.arpa (Christine Blumenkamp) writes:
> I am trying to write dump procedures for a Sperry 5000/80 (same as Arete 1200)
> running on Unix System V.2 and have run into difficulties trying to copy large
> filesystems to tape using the tar and the cpio command.  I am copying at 6250
> bpi in both cases.  On large filesystems that require more than one tape, both
> tar and cpio go to the end of the tape, issue a tape write error message and
> exit the tar or cpio command.  The volcopy command does prompt for additional
> tapes; however, we have problems restoring files with this command since we do
> not have an additional disk which is large enough for restoring our large
> filesystems.
>
I have had this same problem on a number of systems (V7, V.2, BSD).  The old
dd(1) program seems to work well as both tar(1) and cpio(1) have means for
requesting the standard input and standard output as the input and output.
Try this:
	cpio -o < file_list | \
	while :
	do
		dd of=tape_drive bs=block_size count=some_number
	done

(Your milage may vary, and there is something wrong, I can feel it...)

Sorry I didn't EMAIL you the answer, but I don't know how well mail works
out of this system...

- john.		(jfh@killer.UUCP)