Imation - Data Center Tape Cartridge Care and Handling

Includes Imation 3590, 3590E, 9840, 9940, DLTtape., and Ultrium. Cartridge Families

The amount of data generated and stored during daily operations is increasing exponentially for most organizations. One of the most common tools for storing and backing up this data is half-inch high capacity tape. Tape has been the most viable backup and storage solution since the introduction of the first commercial magnetic recording round reel tape in 1953. Half-inch tape cartridges were first introduced in 1984 as a replacement technology for half-inch round reel tapes that had been the industry standard for more than ten years.

One of the more frequent questions that organizations have about their half-inch tape is how long will it last, or what is its lifetime? The lifetime of half-inch high capacity tape media is defined as the length of time that the media can be successfully written to, stored, and successfully read. The life expectancy for half-inch tape media can depend on many different factors including the quality of manufacturing, the care with which it has been handled, the conditions under which it has been stored, and how much it has been used. Another factor that has the potential of affecting the media lifetime is changes in technology. In this article we will explore in depth how each of these factors can affect the life of a half-inch media cartridge.

Media Manufacturing
Manufacturers of magnetic media typically build their half-inch magnetic media cartridges under rigorous process controls to guarantee that product specifications are met for durability and archival stability. In addition to testing the media quality as a new cartridge out-of-the-box, environmental and stress testing are performed to assure that the product will withstand the test of time. Magnetic media coating is composed of 40% to 50% magnetic particles by volume, a polymer binder, and small amounts of cross-linking agents, dispersants, and lubricants. Magnetic media is formulated to not only yield specific magnetic properties, but also to provide good durability so that the tape can withstand repeated high speed motion, contact with tape path components and read/write heads, and various environmental conditions.

Significant research has been performed to determine the lifetime and archival stability of magnetic media, and results have shown that magnetic media is suitable for archival storage. 3M, the National Media Laboratory (NML), and Carnegie-Mellon University have performed joint and independent studies to assess chemical, thermal, and archival stability of advanced metal particulate coatings, and results projected that magnetic media may reasonably be expected to have a lifetime of 15 to 30 years under normal usage conditions. These conclusions are based on magnetic performance only, and do not take into account other factors, like handling and environmental conditions, that may affect media lifetime and archival stability.

Handling and Care of Cartridges
Together with hardware manufacturers, magnetic media manufacturers recommend specific conditions under which cartridges should be handled, transported, stored, and used. Compliance to these specifications will insure that the product will perform to standards. Data can be affected by environmental factors such as debris, high temperature or humidity, drastic temperature or humidity changes, and stray magnetic field sources, as well as improper handling of the cartridges by either operations personnel or by the hardware. If not properly handled, high-capacity cartridges are susceptible to damage due to the increased linear density, increased track density and subsequent positioning of the data and servo tracks closer to the edges of the tape. Some basic rules for handling cartridges include:

stack or carry no more than six cartridges at a time to minimize the risk of dropping the stack
do not place cartridges that are dirty or damaged in a drive
use the finger grips, if present, to carry a single cartridge
to prevent tape damage, do not remove leader blocks or open drive doors
tape surfaces should never be touched as residue from a fingerprint can create greater head-to-tape separation and result in loss of signal (data)
respond to drive messages for cleaning as directed, and use only cleaner cartridges recommended by the hardware provider
assure that drives are maintained and serviced per the hardware manufacturer’s specifications

Dropped Cartridges
If a half-inch tape cartridge is dropped, there is always a possibility that the media inside may have been damaged. Even if there is no visible evidence of damage on the outside of the cartridge, the cartridge’s life may be shortened. Tape-edge damage or misalignment of internal components, such as hub(s) and tape pack(s), may occur. This damage may not present itself initially, but may develop over time. For this reason, it is recommended that a procedure be developed for dealing with dropped cartridges. The data on any dropped cartridge should be copied to another cartridge, and the dropped cartridge should be retired.

Transportation and Storage of Cartridge
Proper packaging of cartridges is imperative to guarantee the life of the cartridge, and the integrity of the data contained on it. Cartridges shipped with inadequate packaging could be damaged, which may result in data loss or reduced cartridge life.

Cartridges are shipped from the manufacturing plant in packaging specific to the tape technology being shipped. This packaging has been tested under extreme conditions to assure that the product will reach the customer without any compromise in quality. Customers should not accept any shipment of new cartridges that has not been delivered in the original packaging. When shipping a cartridge or cartridges offsite it is essential that the packaging used to ship the cartridges is strong enough to withstand shipping damage, does not allow for cartridges to hit or rub against each other, minimizes the internal forces within the package, does not contaminate the cartridges, and can be used for repeated shipments without degradation of the packaging materials. To ship a single cartridge, the cartridge should be enclosed in a plastic bag that is approved for use with data tape cartridges. The cartridge should then be placed in a shipping carton lined with several layers of bubble wrap. If shipping more than one cartridge in the same container, a package must be used which will allow for all cartridges to be shipped safely, without impacting the quality of any of the cartridges surrounding it.

In addition to shipping cartridges in an appropriate multiple cartridge container, it is recommended that this container be placed in an over-packed box to further reduce the potential of damage due to shipping. We recommend that periodic inspections be done of multiple cartridge containers used repeatedly, to assure that all of the requirements mentioned above are met.

Operating Environment
To maximize tape life, tape cartridges should be kept in an atmosphere free of contaminating dust particles and corrosive gases or chemicals. Cartridges should always be acclimated to the operating environment prior to mounting the cartridge on the drive. A minimum of 24 hours of acclimation time is generally recommended to make sure the cartridge is at the same humidity and temperature as the drive for newly received tapes.

Durability
Assuming that the quality of the media, handling, drive maintenance, and environmental conditions are all within specification, the most significant factor that contributes to media lifetime is how much the media has been used. Durability is a measure of how long the media is expected to last based on how much it is used. Durability is tested by the media manufacturer for each product, and it is included as part of the product specification. For example, on a high-density half-inch tape cartridge, assuming the customer uses a cartridge to write at least 10GB per week, durability lifetime ranges are projected to run from 10 to 30 years. If only 1GB per week is written per cartridge, the projected lifetime increases by an order of magnitude.

Technology Change
Since digital information is dependent on the availability of hardware and software, half-inch media is particularly susceptible to technological changes. In addition, each technological advance typically allows the user to store more data more quickly in a smaller space. Therefore the media may be migrated off the existing platform prior to the expected life of the media.

Even with a relatively high usage rate, media lifetime ranges are projected in decades, which is significantly longer than what has been seen historically in the hardware and software technologies used to run them.

Round reel 3420-type drives present in 1974 were replaced starting in 1984 by square tape made with chromium dioxide magnetic particles yielding 210 MB’s of storage. In 1995, even though the square tape format was retained, high capacity cartridges utilizing tape made with metal particulate (MP) magnetic particles and storing 10 to 20 GB’s of data required a complete change of hardware. Though drive manufacturers are committed to maintain the square tape format to assure that automation can be used for future products, the need for higher and higher densities requires changes to magnetic media technologies. The native capacities for tape cartridges are quickly approaching 1TB and projections are that this number will grow to 10 terabytes by 2013. This continued rate of change for new storage technologies is driving media to become obsolete within 10 years, far short of its useful life.

The first step in technology obsolescence is to stop production of the existing drive, while still providing maintenance support to the hardware in the field. As time goes on, the cost of spare parts escalates due to reduced demand, and the availability of personnel qualified to do the maintenance and system support dwindles. This can lead to production interruptions.

Technology obsolescence has the greatest potential of affecting the largest number of cartridges in a data center’s library. For this reason, every company involved in the storage of digital data needs to adopt a long-term strategy for migration of their hardware and software systems as a result of advancing technology. In addition to considering the Return on Investment (ROI) of the new technology, consideration should be given to increased maintenance cost and potential work stoppages if the older technology is retained.

Summary
As we’ve seen, there are many factors that can go into predicting the lifespan of half-inch media. Under specified conditions, half-inch media should last several decades and be a viable solution to any long-term backup plan. Assessing the technology life cycle, however, should also be a key element of the media lifetime plan.