ADSM/AIX 3.1.1.2, AIX 4.2.1, 3575 Library

Does anyone know why ADSM will dismount idle tapes (in a 3575 tape
library) for some processes, but not for others?  It seems if a DB
backup, migration, or a restore needs a drive it will dismount an idle
volume.  Yet if I need to check in a volume to satisfy a mount request
for reclaim, restore, etc. there has to be a drive empty for the task or
it will fail.  Then I manually (via dismount volume command) dismount
the volume, and have to run the checkin again.

Also, while we are on the subject of tapes, if ADSM tries to mount a
tape that has been checked in as scratch, and for some reason the tape
volume cannot be written to (like maybe an operator checked it in with
write protect on), why does it continue to attempt the mount of that
same tape over and over again.  Processes fail even though there are
other scratch volumes in the library.  So I guess the question would be

1) How does ADSM select a scratch tape from the library?
2) Why does it give a very deceiving error message "unable to open
drive".

And lastly, ADSM is very smart in some respects, but when it comes to
tapes it seems the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing.  When
checking in a tape to satisfy a mount request, why does ADSM have to
mount the tape, verify the label, put the tape away, then mount the tape
again for use? (answer for this is probably "because that's how it
works")

Debbie Weeks
University of South Florida
Information Technologies/Technical Support
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*Debbie AT admin.usf DOT edu
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