
Appendix B. TapeAlert Flags
TapeAlert is a patented technology and standard of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) that defines conditions and problems that are experienced by tape drives. The technology enables a server to read TapeAlert flags from a tape drive through the SCSI, Fibre Channel, or Library/Drive Interface (LDI or 
TapeAlert Flags Supported by the Drive
TapeAlert Flags Supported by the IBM TotalStorage LTO Ultrium 2 Tape Drive
| Flag | Flag | 
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| Parameter | Flag | Description | Action Required | ||
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| 3 | 03h | Hard error | Set for any unrecoverable read, | See the Action Required column | |
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 | write, or positioning error. (This | for Flag 4, 5, or 6 in this table. | |
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 | flag is set in conjunction with | 
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 | flags 4, 5, or 6.) | 
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| 4 | 04h | Media | Set for any unrecoverable read, | Replace the tape cartridge. | |
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 | write, or positioning error that is | 
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 | due to a faulty tape cartridge. | 
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| 5 | 05h | Read failure | Set for any unrecoverable read | If Flag 4 is also set, the cartridge | |
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 | error where isolation is uncertain | is defective. Replace the tape | |
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 | and failure could be due to a | cartridge. If Flag 4 is not set, see | |
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 | faulty tape cartridge or to faulty | error code 6 in Table 15 on | |
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 | drive hardware. | page 67. | |
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| 6 | 06h | Write failure | Set for any unrecoverable write | If Flag 9 is also set, make sure | |
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 | or positioning error where | that the  | |
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 | isolation is uncertain and failure | set so that data can be written to | |
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 | could be due to a faulty tape | the tape (see “Setting the | |
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 | cartridge or to faulty drive | ||
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 | hardware. | page 50). If Flag 4 is also set, | |
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 | the cartridge is defective. | |
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 | Replace the tape cartridge. If | |
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 | Flag 4 is not set, see error code | |
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 | 6 in Table 15 on page 67. | |
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| 8 | 08h | Not data grade | Set when severe servo errors | Replace the tape cartridge. If this | |
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 | occur while loading a tape | error occurs with multiple tapes, | |
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 | cartridge. | see error code 6 in Table 15 on | |
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 | page 67. | |
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| 9 | 09h | Write protect | Set when the tape drive detects | Make sure that the cartridge’s | |
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 | that the tape cartridge is | ||
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 | the tape drive can write data to | ||
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 | the tape (see “Setting the | |
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 | page 50). | |
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| 10 | 0Ah | No removal | Set when the tape drive receives | Refer to the documentation for | |
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 | an UNLOAD command after the | your server’s operating system. | |
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 | server prevented the tape | 
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 | cartridge from being removed. | 
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| © Copyright IBM Corp. 2002 | 97 | 
