Informix ISM and 7332

Platform:RS/6000-B50 AIX 4.3.3 Informix IDS 7.31.UC6 Informix Storage Manager:2.2 Atape.driver: 5.0.2.0 Tape Drive: IBM 7332-4mm DDS2 12 tape autoloader I am attempting to get the Informix OnBar backup utility installed and running on my development/test system. I seem to be missing the link that allows Informix's storage manager (ISM) to communicate with the AIX atape drivers. I believe that ISM should have the intelligence to send a command to the 7332 and tell it to shuffle to the next tape. Instead, ISM will detect that the tape is full and politely sit there and wait for me to shuffle the drive. The only mention of this in TFM (Storage Manager Administrators Guide) is that if I put the device under Auto Media Management then the ISM will automatically mount a volume and use it for storage operation. Up to this point I have been thinking that meant ISM would send a signal to the tape drive to unmount, shuffle, and remount. I'm now thinking that the ISM definition of mount is limited to detecting the label on the tape itself and has nothing to do with physically mounting the tape. Will the ISM send signals to the tape drive? If not, how do others using this configuration accomplish backups that cross multiple tapes? TIA Dave Thacker Omni Hotels Reservation Center

Dave, AFAIK, ISM is a DUMB storage manager. It contains no significant device handling facilities (e.g. robotics). I think what the manual refers to is setting the tape unit to automatically switch tapes on a full condition. HTH, Doug "Dave Thacker" <d_thacker@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:op1f5.971$ck7.266586@nntp1.onemain.com... > Platform:RS/6000-B50 AIX 4.3.3 > Informix IDS 7.31.UC6 Informix Storage Manager:2.2 > Atape.driver: 5.0.2.0 Tape Drive: IBM 7332-4mm DDS2 12 tape > autoloader > > I am attempting to get the Informix OnBar backup utility installed and > running on my development/test system. I seem to > be missing the link that allows Informix's storage manager (ISM) to > communicate with the AIX atape drivers. I believe > that ISM should have the intelligence to send a command to the 7332 and tell > it to shuffle to the next tape. Instead, > ISM will detect that the tape is full and politely sit there and wait for me > to shuffle the drive. The only mention of this in > TFM (Storage Manager Administrators Guide) is that if I put the device under > Auto Media Management then the > ISM will automatically mount a volume and use it for storage operation. Up > to this point I have been thinking that > meant ISM would send a signal to the tape drive to unmount, shuffle, and > remount. I'm now thinking that the ISM > definition of mount is limited to detecting the label on the tape itself and > has nothing to do with physically mounting > the tape. Will the ISM send signals to the tape drive? If not, how do > others using this configuration accomplish > backups that cross multiple tapes? > > TIA > Dave Thacker Omni Hotels Reservation Center > > > >