IBM LTO 6 - Issue With Cleaning Media

Asset ID:	1-72-1586104.1
Update Date:	2017-05-18
Keywords:

Solution Type Problem Resolution Sure

Solution 1586104.1 : IBM LTO 6 - Issue With Cleaning Media

Applies to:

3rd-Party Hardware - Version Not Applicable to Not Applicable [Release N/A]
IBM LTO6 Tape Drive - Version All Versions and later
Information in this document applies to any platform.

Symptoms

LTO 6 Cleaning tapes become un-useable in IBM LTO 6 drives.

This issue is a Drive Only Issue with IBM Gen 6 Drives only with only Cleaning Tapes.
*** Data tapes do not have this issue ***

Changes

IBM made a change to the Gen-6 drive regarding the Cleaning Tape Cartridge Memory management.
Loading a virgin cleaning tape into a Gen6 drive in a library will produce an unusable Cleaning Tape.
A cleaning tape in this condition will not be usable in any Generation IBM LTO.
IBM has indicated this will be fixed in a new version of drive code due out later this year.

Cause

Manufacturing microcode issue in the IBM LTO 6 drive.

IBM Generation 6 Microcode: C9T4 and D2DA
This issue is a Drive Only Issue with Gen 6 Drives only with only Cleaning Tapes.
*** Data tapes do not have this issue ***

Current release of IBM LTO 6 C9T4 and D2DA drive code makes cleaning tape unuseable in IBM LTO 6 drives if loaded into a IBM LTO 6 drive 1st.

Solution

The only way we know of right now that will Salvage a Rejected cleaning Cartridge is to load it into a HP LTO Drive 1st.

Work around solution:

If a customer has seen these issues occur, it would be recommended that a CSE be dispatched with the "SL-series tray power up tool" to initialize a batch of cleaning tapes for the customer.

SL8500 - Drive Tray Power Tool Problem with HP LTO Drives (Doc ID 1465961.1)

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Once this is done, it can be used in the IBM LTO 6 drive without issue.

The work around for this issue until the new updated Gen6 Code is available is: Load the new "out of the wrapper" cleaning tape into any other non Gen6 LTO Drive that is in an Oracle Library for the first use of this cleaning tape.
The other LTO drives will initialize the Cleaning Tape and it will now be usable in ALL Generations of LTO drives from then on including IBM Gen6.

The only way we know of right now that will Salvage a Rejected cleaning Cartridge, that was first loaded into an IBM Gen6 drive, is to load it into a HP LTO Drive.
The HP drive will initialize the CM and thus make the cleaning tape usable again.

This issue will be resolved in future code after D2DA. Release date, TBD.

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