Chapter 2 Operation and Maintenance
Retensioning Tapes
10 Travan Portable USB Tape Drive User’s Guide
Retensioning Tapes 2
Travan tapes must be retensioned frequently to ensure data integrity and
optimize drive performance. Retensioning involves running the entire
tape through the drive, from beginning to end.
For optimum performance, cartridges used for daily backups should be
retensioned prior to each use. Yo ur backup software automatically
retensions the tape before each backup and restore operation. However, if
you ever have a problem reading a tape, manual retensioning (using your
backup software) may solve the problem.
We recommend retensioning whenever a cartridge:
• Is being used for the first time
• Has not been used for over a month
• Has been dropped
• Has been shipped
• Has been exposed to a significant change in temperature
Write-Protecting Cartridges 2
Travan cartridges feature a write-protect or lock switch near the upper
left corner of the cartridge. When the write-protect switch is in the
unlocked position, see figure 6, the cartridge is ready for normal writing
and reading. When the write-protect switch is in the locked position, the
drive can read data from the cartridge, but cannot write to the cartridge.
Cartridges are usually shipped from