HP StoreEver DAT Tape Drives - Manual (Page 55)

10 Diagnostic Tools and
Performance
Diagnostic tools
HP Library & Tape Tools
HP StorageWorks Library & Tape Tools is the recommended diagnostic and support tool for
your HP tape storage product. It is available on the CD shipped with your product or as a free
download from the HP web site. It is supported on nearly all major operating systems. See
http://www.hp.com/support/tapetools for compatibility information, updates and the latest version
of the tool.
Troubleshooting with Library & Tape Tools
1. From the HP StorageWorks CD, select troubleshoot.
This will allow you to run Library & Tape Tools in standard mode, either directly from the CD (no
installation on the server) or as an installation on your server. HP recommends installation of Library
& Tape Tools, so that it can be quickly accessed at any time. HP Support will also request that you
use Library & Tape Tools should you need to contact them in the future, so it is a good idea to
have it installed.
2. When Library & Tape Tools is first run, it will scan for HP tape drives and libraries on your system
and ask you to select the one to work with. At this time you can see the HBA configuration of your
server, how your devices are connected and the SCSI IDs of those devices.
3. Once you have selected your device you have a number of choices for troubleshooting.
• Device identification: shows part number, serial number and information about any cartridge
loaded
• Firmware upgrade: allows you to locate and upgrade to the latest firmware. You will need to
be connected to the internet for this.
• Run tests: allows you to run proactive tests on your drive, such as the drive assessment test,
which will verify the functionality of your drive in around 20 minutes. HP recommends
running this test before calling HP Support. You will need to provide a ‘trusted’ cartridge that
can be written to during this test.
• Generate a support ticket: this is a full dump of the drive logs along with interpretation and
is used by HP Support to learn about the condition of your drive. Most useful is the device
analysis section which is the output from approximately 20 rules forming a comprehensive
analysis of the health of your drive. These rules may give advice such as cleaning the head
or trying a different tape if issues are found. The support ticket can be sent to HP Support
for further analysis.
• Run the performance tests: the tests to measure the write/read performance of your tape
drive and the data generation rates of your disk subsystem are also integrated into Library &
Tape Tools. Use these tests to find the performance bottleneck in your system.
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