tar: tape read error

[inma]

When I want to list the table of a tape writed with a tar command like this:
tar -tvf /dev/rmt/1n

this message appears:

tar: tape read error

the tape was written successfully because the first time I used the same command as now:
tar tvf /dev/rmt/1n, 2 times and finally tar tvf /dev/rmt/1 but always show the message tar: tape read error.

To create the tape I used:
tar cvf /dev/rmt/1n disk1
tar cvf /dev/rmt/1n disk2
tar cvf /dev/rmt/1 disk3

Anybody can help me?

Thanks,

 

[KenCunningham]

If you do mt -f /dev/rmt/1n fsf 2 (to position the tape at the bebinning of the third save (the first being position 0)), then try the tar tvf, does it work?

 

[inma]

Hi KenCunningham, when I do "mt -f /dev/rmt/1n fsf 2", this message appears:
/dev/rmt/1n fsf 2 failed: I/O error
Then I have tried with "mt -f /dev/rmt/1n fsf 1" and it works OK, but when I do "tar tvf /dev/rmt/1n", this message appears: tar: blocksize = 0.
Thanks.

 

[bfitzmai]

Inma,
You could have a bad or dirty tape. Clean you tape drive prior to doing your tar again. Another thing... Are these tapes 8mm? If so, are the tapes 160m? A few years ago, I had alot of problems with the 160m tapes. Would get no errors when I wrote to the tapes... Would get the read error when I tried to read them... 112m tapes would work with out any problems. Sun came in and replaced the 8mm drive. Still had intermittent problems. Now I only use the 112m tapes.

 

[inma]

Thanks Bfitzmai for your answering. I had cleaned the tape drive.
I am using a hp dds-2 tape, 4 mm, compressed capacity: 8GB, that was written in a DDS-2 tape drive of Sun (Solaris 5.5)and "tar cvf /dev/rmt/1n" for some files.
Now, I want to read it in a DDS-3 tape drive of Sun (Solaris 5.8) and I use "tar tvf /dev/rmt/1n" after rewind it, and show this messages: tar: tape read error

I do "tcopy /dev/rmt/1" and this message appears:
file 1: eof after 0 records: 0 bytes
eot
total length: 0 bytes.

Inma

 

[KenCunningham]

Hmm. I've had problems with incompatibilities between DDS2 and DDS3/4 before - maybe that's the case here too. Can the tape still be read on the drive it was written on?

 

[inma]

Hi KenCunningham, thanks for your reponse.
Now I haven't the drive where the tape was written because it was broken up.

I'll try to find another one.

Thanks again.
Inma