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Legacy Forums => Experienced User Forum => Topic started by: chris snow on September 17, 2003, 03:00:22 PM

Title: backup fails after 1 or 2 backups
Post by: chris snow on September 17, 2003, 03:00:22 PM

I have an SME with a DDS4 SCSI backup tape.  After 1 or 2 backups, it fails with  

DUMP: dumping (Pass IV) [regular files]
buffer (writer): write of data failed: Input/output error
bytes to write=10240, bytes written=-1, total written      42440K
  DUMP: Broken pipe
  DUMP: The ENTIRE dump is aborted.

I have found that running the following commands will allow the next backup to finish successfully:

# rmmod st
# insmod st

Any ideas what can be causing the failure?

TIA.

Chris

Title: Re: backup fails after 1 or 2 backups
Post by: Gene Cooper on September 18, 2003, 05:55:55 AM

I have numerous servers in the field with DAT tape drives and I've used DAT drives for years...

I find them very reliable and not flakey under SME.  But my own drive is doing the same thing...more or less.  I'm reasonably sure it's a bad drive.  

HOWEVER, is your drive a Seagate or an HP (Compaq)?  I find they fail quite often.  Buy SONY!  They don't break.  My Drive is a DDS4 Seagate.  I got it when I gave a customer my own Sony because of repeated RMAs and backup problems.

Backup is a problem area.  For inexpensive drives, buy Sony DAT.

G

p.s.  Try running a fresh cleaning tape through it at least three-four times!

Title: Re: backup fails after 1 or 2 backups
Post by: chris snow on September 18, 2003, 05:02:58 PM

Three (out of five) hard-drives have failed on the server also.  I'm starting to think it may be the SCSI card that's faulty.