We are now installing ADSM on MVS/ESA and want to be able to switch to an AIX
server later. We will use our 3480 tape drives as a start, but we plan to buy
a tape library next year. In this context, I've got several questions:

When introducing the library, we will have two different tape formats for at
  least some period of time. Does ADSM cope with this? Is it possible to
  distribute backups over several types of tape drives?

Can tapes written by the MVS server be read by the AIX server?

Are there alternatives to the 3494? Does ADSM support 8mm or Metrum
  libraries? What about others? GRAU robots are interesting for us, because
  they are medium independent, so we could use it to feed our old 3480s and
  some new, say, Metrum devices simultaneously.

Interfaces exist, which allow to attach SCSI devices to an IBM channel. Are
  there experiences with 8mm, Metrum or other devices/libraries used by ADSM
  on MVS or VM?

I heard that ADSM keeps together the backups of one workstation on few tapes,
  which in my opinion is a must. Does it work? Will media size affect it?

Thank You in advance for any answers, comments, ideas.

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Reinhard Mersch                     Westfaelische Wilhelms-Universitaet
Reinhard Mersch                     Westfaelische Wilhelms-Universitaet
Universitaetsrechenzentrum, Einsteinstrasse 60, 48149 Muenster, Germany
E-Mail: mersch AT uni-muenster DOT de                   Phone: +49(251)83-2488