We have been using the DLT7000's in an STK 9710 library since May. They
installed and worked the first try, and have caused no problems since.
> ----------
> From: Alexander, Robert[SMTP:ralexander AT SHL DOT COM]
> Sent: Monday, July 28, 1997 1:31 PM
> To: ADSM-L AT VM.MARIST DOT EDU
> Subject: Re: DLT7000 drives with ADSM
>
> Steven,
>
> We two have been using BreeceHill libraries- ours are Q47's with
> DLT4000
> drives and have been having much of the same problems from the sound
> of
> what you have related... I wonder if the problem is the drive itself
> (either DLT4000-7000) or if it is the library product itself. I would
> be
> very interested in hearing about people who use either product, Q7's
> or
> Q47's without problems...
>
> We have replaced the libraries' system boards, drives, cables,
> connector
> boards, and yes, power supplies. Eventually, we have had to have
> multiple replacement libraries shipped to alleviate the problems. I am
> not sure who or what to point the finger at, the units perform well
> when
> they work, but we have had a ton of reliability problems. Our systems
> are HP9000's-- the server unit is a T520, our clients are T500's and
> other 800 series units. I have been using DLT units with other
> systems
> for years and have had nothing but relatively high performance and
> reliability. Kind of makes you wonder...
>
>
> Robert Alexander
> SHL/MCI Systemhouse
> ralexander AT shl DOT com
>
> ----------
> From: Steven P Roder
> To: ADSM-L AT VM.MARIST DOT EDU
> Subject: Re: DLT7000 drives with ADSM
> Date: Monday, July 28, 1997 7:48AM
>
> On Fri, 25 Jul 1997, Pittson, Timothy ,HiServ/NA wrote:
> >
> > I'm looking at throwing some additional hardware at our ADSM server.
> > We're currently using a 3494 with 2 3590 tape drives and have been
> very
> > happy with the performance and reliability. However, my management
> > won't go for another 3494 frame with additional 3590's because of
> the
> > cost. This leaves me with DLT and 3570 technology as options.
> Anybody
> > out there in ADSM land using DLT7000 drives ?? If so, have you
> been
> > happy with the reliability, performance, etc. Any gotchas I need to
> > watch out for ??
>
> I mulled responding to this over the weekend, and the continued
> problems
> have made me decide to say something here. I received two BreeceHill
> Q7's
> with DLT7000 drives in them back in May, and they are still not
> working
> reliably. First, I had problems with PTI's differential scsi card,
> which
> prevented me from writing to the drives (scsi adapter errors). We got
> rid
> of the PTI boards, replaceing them with differential cards from Sun.
> We
> then proceeded to get read errors auditing the volumes created.
> BreeceHill sent me out new firmware, a replacement drive, and a
> replacement power supply, and the errors persist. I have seen similar
> problems accross both Q7's. The problem seems to crop up as a
> calibration error, which then causing subsequent reads to fail.
> BreeceHill has now involed Quantum in this, so maybe it will
> eventually
> get fixed. I think there are still bugs in the firmware and drives
> relating to calibration and head positioning. I do not see this being
> resolved anytime soon. If I were to make a recommendation to
> management
> such as you, with my experiences so far with the DLT7000's, I would
> tell
> them to bite the bullet, and buy more 3494/3590 technology. In my
> opinion, the DLT7000's were rushed to market, and are unusable in
> their
> current state. They should still be in the lab, not in customer
> shops.
>
> Also, when these errors first came up, I opened a problem with IBM's
> ADSM
> support, thinking that the problem may be with their device drivers.
> After getting some traces, IBM said it was hardware, not software. I
> had
> an extremely difficult time convincing the hardware vendors that they
> had
> a problem. Throughout this whole ordeal, I have kept IBM in the loop,
> and
> I would like to say, publicly, that the ADSM Level 2 support team has
> done
> an outstanding job with this problem. I do not know how anyone could
> bash
> their support services, as was done on this list. My experiences with
> ADSM support have been nothing short of outstanding, partciularly
> Larry
> and Andy.
>
> If anyone else is using DLT7000's, and can say that they work, I would
> love to hear about it! If anyone else is using DLT7000's with similar
> problems to mine, I would love to hear about that too!
>
> Steve (unVMix Systems Programmer/Dude) Roder
> (tkssteve AT ubvm.cc.buffalo DOT edu | tkssteve AT acsu.buffalo DOT edu |
> (716)645-3564 ,
> | http://ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu/~tkssteve)
>
|
