IBM LTO Ultrium 4

To Next Page

To Previous Page

Chapter 4. Using Ultrium media

1 LTO cartridge memory A chip that contains information about the cartridge and the tape, as well

as statistical information about the cartridge use. (For more information,

see “Cartridge Memory chip (LTO-CM)” on page 38.)

2 Cartridge door Protects the tape from contamination when the cartridge is out of the

drive.

3 Leader pin The tape is attached to a leader pin, behind the cartridge door. When the

cartridge is inserted into the drive, a threading mechanism pulls the pin

(and tape) out of the cartridge, across the drive head, and onto a

non-removable take-up reel. The head can then read or write data from or

to the tape.

4 Write-protect switch Prevents data from being written to the tape cartridge. (For more

information, see “Write-protect switch” on page 38.)

5 Label area Provides a location to place a label.

6 Insertion guide A large, notched area that prevents the cartridge from being inserted

incorrectly.

Types of cartridges

Ultrium media is available in the following types:

v “Data cartridge”

v “WORM (Write Once, Read Many) cartridge” on page 39

v “Cleaning cartridge” on page 40

Data cartridge

All generations of Ultrium data cartridges contain a half-inch, dual-coat,

metal-particle tape. When processing tape in the cartridges, Ultrium Tape Drives

use a linear, serpentine recording format.

Figure 7. The LTO Ultrium Data Cartridge