HP StoreEver ESL G3 Tape Libraries - Manual (Page 28)

Media ID checking
Media ID checking policy restricts the movement of tape cartridges based on the media ID on the
barcode label. This policy also helps you monitor the management of tapes and drives by the host
applications. When you create or modify a partition, you can enable or disable the Media Type
Checking option. If you choose to enable media type checking, you also can use the Media Checking
Policy option to select from two modes of operation: Required or Not Required. With either mode,
the library checks whether a cartridge has a valid media ID on the barcode label.
In Required mode, if the library does not find a valid media ID on a cartridge, the library does not
allow it to be moved into or within the library. If the library finds a valid media ID, the library
allows it to be moved from an I/E station into a partition that contains magazines matching the
media domain of the cartridge (for example, LTO), but the library does not allow the cartridge to
be moved from storage to a drive that does not have a matching type (for example, an LTO-5
cartridge will not be allowed to move to an LTO-4 drive).
In Not Required mode, if the library does not find a valid media ID on a cartridge, the library
allows it to be moved into or within the library as long as the I/E station magazine, storage
magazine, or drive matches the media domain of the cartridge. If the library finds a valid media
ID, the library does not allow the cartridge to be moved from storage to a drive that does not have
a matching type (for example, an LTO-5 cartridge will not be allowed to move to an LTO-4 drive).
Return media identifier
For the media policy settings, the library makes assumptions about a media identifier and its
position in a media barcode label. To be considered a media identifier, the identifier characters
must be correct for the media domain and media type. Also, the identifier, which for some media
types can consist of more than one character, must be complete and in the correct location. The
correct characters in the wrong position are not viewed as a media type identifier. In a physical
library or partition containing mixed media, the media identifier is not required for all cartridges.
Table 3 (page 28) explains the media type identifiers and assumptions.
Table 3 Sampling of media type identifiers
Identifier Media type Media domain
“L4” as the last two characters in the
barcode LTO-4 LTO
“LU” as the last two characters in the
barcode LTO-4 WORM LTO
“L5” as the last two characters in the
barcode LTO-5 LTO
“LV” as the last two characters in the
barcode LTO-5 WORM LTO
“L6” as the last two characters in the
barcode LTO-6 LTO
With a valid media type identifier present and the Media Type Checking setting enabled (default)
a host is prevented from executing invalid media moves across differing media types. For example,
a host can be prevented from moving LTO-5 media to an LTO-4 drive. If an invalid move is
attempted, the library returns an error to the host.
Returning media identifiers to hosts
With the Return Media Identifier setting, you can control if and where a media type identifier
appears in the volume serial number that is returned to the host.
Table 4 (page 29) shows an example of how the return media identifier behaves, depending on
the setting you choose. The bold, underlined portion is the media identifier.
28 Modifying the library configuration