Hello,
at present there is no workaround available other than to use a blocksize
not larger than 64kB or to use the tape.sys of Windows 2003 no SP. The
limitation is hardcoded in the tape.sys of SP1. Please find the customer
advisory from HP below.
CUSTOMER ADVISORY
OT050906_CW01 REVISION: 0
Advisory: HP StorageWorks Tape Drives and Tape Libraries May Experience
Performance Issues and/or Failures with Windows 2003 OS (SP1)
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RELEASE DATE:
13 September 2005
DESCRIPTION
Microsoft Windows uses a class driver/miniclass driver approach to many
storage device drivers. Microsoftâ??s tape class driver provides a
consistent interface to applications without any regard for specific tape
devices. The tape class driver also provides some common routines. A
tape miniclass driver, such as hplto.sys, is specific to a particular tape
drive or family of tape drives. The miniclass driver provides
implementations for specific drive functionality. For example the tape
class driver provides a function to report tape position to the
application, but it relies on the tape miniclass driver to actually go out
and determine the tape position from the specific tape drive. Microsoft
provides a single tape class driver, tape.sys, and HP provides family-
specific tape miniclass drivers.
At the end of March 2005, Microsoft released Service Pack 1 (SP1) for its
Windows Server 2003 platforms. With SP1, Microsoft changed the
driver â??tape.sysâ?? to allow for NTBackup tapes written on 64bit Windows
2003 Server to be read or cataloged on 32 bit Windows 2003 Server systems.
The change in the tape.sys driver imposes a limit on the data transfers to
a block size of no greater than 64KB.
Performance issue will be more apparent on all high performance tape
drives such as the HP Ultrium 960 and SDLT 600 using the tape.sys driver.
As a result, customers that use backup applications utilizing HP tape
drivers (hplto.sys, hpdat.sys, hpdltw32.sys, hpdltx64.sys, and
hpdltw64.sys) and tape.sys driver may experience poor performance and/or
failed backup jobs. If you are experiencing either of these symptoms,
check with your backup application software vendor to see if the backup
application is using the Microsoft tape driver, tape.sys. If this is the
case, check if the backup application can use an alternative driver to
overcome this issue.
Cause of the issue: Because the new tape.sys driver imposes a maximum
limit of 64Kb block size transfers, tape write and read performance can be
constrained.
SCOPE
Products Affected:
HP standalone tape drives
HP tape libraries
HP tape autoloaders
Note: All current firmware versions are affected.
Operating Systems Affected:
Windows 2003 SP1 for x86 x64 and IA64 systems
Third Party Products Affected:
Customer needs to check with their backup application software vendor
NTBackup is also affected
Drivers, agents or utilities affected:
HP LTO, DAT and SDLT tape drivers: hplto.sys, hpdat.sys, hpdltw32.sys,
hpdltx64.sys, and hpdltw64.sys
Microsoft Windows driver: Tape.sys distributed with Windows 2003 Server,
Service Pack 1
RESOLUTION
There is no hot fix for this issue at this time. HP is working with
Microsoft to develop a solution.
Workaround:
Some backup application may be able to use an alternative tape driver.
Check with the vendor for instructions on how to make this change if
possible. If an alternative driver is not available, delay installation of
Windows 2003 SP1 until a permanent remedy is available.
If you have any additional questions, please contact your HP Support
Representative.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
RECEIVE PROACTIVE UPDATES: Receive support alerts (such as Customer
Advisories), as well as updates on drivers, software, firmware, and
customer replaceable components, proactively via e-mail through HP
Subscriber's Choice. Sign up for Subscriber's Choice at the following URL:
http://www.hp.com/go/myadvisory
HARDWARE PLATFORMS AFFECTED: ESL E-Series Tape Libraries, ESL9000 Series
Tape Library, MSL5000 Storage Library Family, MSL6000 Series Tape Library
COMPONENTS AFFECTED: Enterprise Storage Accessories Tape Drives and Media
OPERATING SYSTEMS AFFECTED: Microsoft (Windows Server 2003)
SOFTWARE AFFECTED: Non-software specific
THIRD PARTY PRODUCTS AFFECTED: None
DOWNLOADABLE FILES: None
NOTICE: The information in this document, including products and software
versions, is current as of the Release Date. This document is subject to
change without notice.
©Copyright 2005 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
Hewlett-Packard Company shall not be liable for technical or editorial
errors or omissions contained herein. The information provided is
provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. To the extent permitted by
law, neither HP nor its affiliates, subcontractors or suppliers will be
liable for incidental, special or consequential damages including downtime
cost; lost profits; damages relating to the procurement of substitute
products or services; or damages for loss of data, or software
restoration. The information in this document is subject to change without
notice. Hewlett-Packard Company and the names of Hewlett-Packard products
referenced herein are trademarks of Hewlett-Packard Company in the United
States and other countries. Other product and company names mentioned
herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
kind regards
Reinhold Danner
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