Dell TL2000 manual Cartridge Compatibility, Worm Write Once, Read Many

Type	Native Data Capacity	Recording Format
Ultrium 3	400 GB (800 GB at 2:1	Reads and writes data on 704
	compression)	tracks, sixteen tracks at a time
Ultrium 2	200 GB (400 GB at 2:1	Reads and writes data on 512
	compression)	tracks, eight tracks at a time
Ultrium 1	100 GB (200 GB at 2:1	Reads and writes data on 384
	compression)	tracks, eight tracks at a time

The first set of tracks (sixteen for Ultrium 4 and 3; eight for Ultrium 2 and 1) is written from near the beginning of the tape to near the end of the tape. The head then repositions to the next set of tracks for the return pass. This process continues until all tracks are written and the cartridge is full, or until all data is written.

The cartridge door	protects the tape from contamination when the cartridge is
out of the drive. The tape is attached to a leader pin		, behind the 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.

The write-protect switch			prevents data from being written to the tape
cartridge. For more information, see “Write-Protect Switch” on page 6-5.
The label area	provides a location to place a label. .
The insertion guide		is a large, notched area that prevents the cartridge from
being inserted incorrectly.

Generation 3 and 4 of the LTO Ultrium Data Cartridge have a nominal cartridge life of 20,000 (20k) load and unload cycles. Generation 2 has a nominal cartridge life of 10,000 (10k) load and unload cycles. Generation 1 of the LTO Ultrium Data Cartridge has a nominal cartridge life of 5000 (5k) load and unload cycles.

Cartridge Compatibility

Table 6-1. Ultrium data and cleaning cartridge compatibility with Ultrium tape drive

		LTO Ultrium Data Cartridges
Tape Drive
	800 GB	400 GB	200GB	100GB (Ultrium
	(Ultrium 4)	(Ultrium 3)	(Ultrium 2)	1)
Ultrium 4	Read/Write	Read/Write	Read only
Ultrium 3		Read/Write	Read/Write	Read only
Ultrium 2			Read/Write	Read/Write
Ultrium 1				Read/Write

WORM (Write Once, Read Many)

Certain records retention and data security applications require a Write Once, Read Many (WORM) method for storing data on tape. The LTO Ultrium generation 4 drive enables WORM support when a WORM tape cartridge is loaded into the drive.

6-2Dell PowerVault TL2000 Tape Library and TL4000 Tape Library User's Guide