Tape Errors Occur When Backing Up or Restoring Data

The following section provides guidance to help you address issues related to tape errors when using Arcserve Backup.

Possible Problems

If you receive an error that suggests that there is something wrong with one of your tapes, you should take corrective action as soon as possible to ensure the security of your data. Before replacing your tape, however, you should make certain that it is the tape that is causing the problem, and not another part of your system. Try these steps to rule out the possibility that the problem is being caused by something other than the tape:

• Check the history of the Activity Log for the task that caused the error. Although you may get a media error, it may only be the consequence of an earlier error.
• For example, during a backup job, you may receive a SCSI port error. After receiving this error, you may get errors that indicate a problem with the tape, or even with the drive, but it is possible that these errors are only a consequence of the problems with the SCSI port. Therefore, you should check the Activity Log for all the messages and errors you received prior to receiving the error that indicated a problem with your tape. In this way, you can determine whether there is actually a problem with your tape, or if the tape error was the consequence of another problem.
• Monitor the library robot. If the robot is not functioning properly, you may get tape errors. Make sure that the robot can move tapes in and out of the drives.
• Rule out the possibility of a mechanical problem with the drive. To do so, try one of these options:
• Clean the drive, then perform the same task again.
• If the tape still causes errors after the drive has been cleaned, move the tape to a drive that you know is in good working order and try the same task again. If you get the same error, then it is likely that there is a problem with the tape.

Note: If your drives are inside a library, and you want to try your tape in a different drive, the problem drive must be offline. If Arcserve Backup did not automatically set the drive to an offline status when it detected the media error, right-click the library and select Offline from the pop-up menu.

• Try the same task on the same drive, but with a different tape. If you get the same error, then it is likely that the tape is fine, but that there is a problem with the drive or some other system component.

Possible Resolutions

After you have determined that there is a problem with the tape--part of the tape is unreadable, the tape is physically damaged in some way, and so on--you should replace the tape as soon as possible. Before you do that, you will need to back up the data on the bad tape to a reliable tape. You have two options at this point:

• Copy the data to a new tape
• Create a new backup tape