README: 160GB VXA-320 Tape Drive Microcode
README: 160GB VXA-320 Tape Drive Microcode
Drive SELF-TEST Procedure
Description
Enter Diagnostic Mode:
Running the Self-Test:
Interpreting the Results:
Test Passed:
Drive Failure:
Media Failure:
Incorrect cartridge:
Return to Normal Operation:
This package is being provided to allow the update of older
160GB VXA-320 Tape Drive Microcode
Tape Drives to the latest level of microcode that is currently shipping
from IBM.
Users are responsible to install the latest microcode level
themselves. The microcode and instructions are available
at the IBM external web site:
http://www-933.ibm.com/support/fixcentral/
All levels of AIX that this product was announced on.
The typical time to install this microcode is .3 hrs.
The microcode becomes active when installed and does not require a
system reboot to become active.
Yes, but the tape drive must be available with no tape in the drive,
and no other processing running to the tape drive.
A reboot is not needed as the microcode is active in the drive when the
drive completes microcode download.
If the microcode install is done with Genucode the tape drive Vital
Product Data(VPD) will not show the new microcode level until
you use the AIX rmdev and mkdev commands to remove and add back the
tape drive.
In order to complete the microcode download to the tape drive
you will need to use the AIX 5.1 diagnostics and higher, or the
Genucode program.
If the system does not have the AIX 5.1, or later, diagnostics you will
need to get the Genucode package from CORE or the WEB.
For both the AIX diagnostic package or for Genucode you will
need the microcode and dsdata files in this
package.
This tape drive package will get you to step where
you will need to use the AIX 5.1 and higher Diagnostics or Genucode
to download the microcode into the tape drive.
Remove any tape cartridge from the drive prior to attempting the
microcode download.
Do not power off the tape drive during microcode download as this may
damage the tape drive microcode requiring the tape drive to be replaced.
All pSeries and RS/6000 machines this product was announce on.
In general if the tape drive configures and is available with the VPD
showing the Machine Type and microcode level as described in this
README the machine is one affected.
The microcode update will bring the IBM 160GB VXA-320 tape drive
up to the current level of microcode which is:
3234
Table 1. Microcode History
Tape Drive P/N
| Tape Drive FRU P/N
| Microcode Level
| Load ID
| Date Released
| What does this microcode change
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 310F
| A1700D5D
| Feb 2006
|
-
First Microcode level shipped.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3202
| A1700D5D
| June 2006
|
-
Insure cleaning LED is on when the tape drive exceeds the time since
last cleaned maximum.
-
Turn on the cleaning required LED for any media error.
-
When a tape drive is powered off prior to rewinding the tape
after writing data to
the tape, the next time the tape drive powers on the drive does a
"Format Recovery". This microcode level implements a LED sequence for
this format recovery.
-
Improve handling of tape ejection when the tape drive exceeds the tape
maximum temperature.
-
Change Cleaning cartridge part number to current part
number for AIX diagnostics.
Change from 19P4880 to 24R2138.
-
Correct
cause of time out on AIX cfgmgr command.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3206
| A1700D5D
| Jan 2007
|
-
Correct
the cause of tape drive time out.
(TAPE_ERR4 and TAPE_ERR4 with SCSI_ERR10)
-
Add tape drive and media "Dead bits" to the sense data returned by
the drive for use by the IBM support centers in problem determination.
The drive "Dead bit" is
set by the drive if the drive determines the drive needs
service(the drive will fail AIX diagnostics if this bit is set).
The drive media "Dead bit" and or the media "warning" bit are set
are set if the drive determines the media must be replaced(media "Dead
bit" or if the
drive determines the media is coming to the end of its useful
life(media "warning" bit).
-
If the tape drive is inactive(no tape motion commands) for 30 minutes
the tape drive will rewind the tape back into the cartridge to
keep the media out of the airflow in the drive. This will reduce
some of the impact of customer environment on the media. This will
lengthen the time the tape drive takes to start writing after 30 minutes
of inactivity but will not effect the user application.
-
If the tape drive is unable to determine a tape format on a write
to the tape, from the beginning of the tape, the tape drive will
format the tape, including the vendor area, during the write. This
"Format-on-the-Fly" will make some tapes that previously could
not be written to without errors be able to be written to without
errors.The first use of the tape after this
"Format-on-the-Fly" may take a few minutes longer as the vendor area
of the tape is reconstructed.
-
Decrease the cleaning interval where the tape drive will
request cleaning from 75 tape motion hours to 25 tape motion
hours. This was done to reduce debris build up on the tape
drive heads.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3207
| A1700D5D
| April 2007
|
-
Increase the cleaning interval where the tape drive will
request cleaning from 25 tape motion hours to 75 tape motion
hours as it was prior to microcode level 3206.
-
Increase the amount of time the tape drive is cleaning the drive
head from 5 seconds to 10 seconds.
This was done to reduce debris build up on the tape
drive heads.
This will reduce the number of cleanings on the IBM cleaning
cartridge. The cleaning cartridges will now clean the drive twice
as long and you will get half the number of cleanings you would have
gotten with the cleaning cartridge prior to this microcode change.
-
Improve handling of large blocksize writes where the data is being
delivered to the drive very slowly by the system.
-
Correct
drive issue with Linux where drive
negotiations are ignored after a bus reset if
the drive disconnects.
-
Improved End of Tape(EOT) handling
-
Change internal drive communications to the system to
return Sense Key 02 , ASC/ASCQ 3003 when cleaning tape is in drive.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 320C
| A1700D5D
| July 2007
|
-
Correction
for stuck tape when the eject button is pressed and the tape drive
was in hibernation mode.
-
Correct the cause for premature cleaning requests.
-
Implement a Drive SELF-TEST Procedure. The details of the drive
self test procedure on in the Drive SELF-TEST Procedure section of this
README.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 320E
| A1700D5D
| Nov 2007
|
-
Correct issues with unused(brand new) data tapes after the first
write to the tape. The issue corrected was in
calculating the position data was written on the tape after the first
write to a brand new tape.
-
Correction
for handling 16 byte SCSI commands. Previously
the drive would accept a 16 byte
cmd and disconnect, but never reconnected. The correction
is so the drive will
correctly reject a 16 byte cmd.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3221
| A1700D5D
| Jan 2008
|
-
Fast Eject from Media Preservation mode. If a user presses the eject
button when the tape is in media preservation mode the tape will eject
more rapidly then before(under 1 minute). The reload of the tape will
take longer as the tape was ejected without rewinding and the reloading
of the tape will cause the tape to be rewound.
-
Improved Emergency Eject function to eject the tape in more failed
situations.
-
Improve the drive Internal Self Test(IST).
Improve write error recovery retry.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3231
| A1700D5D
| Aug 2008
|
-
Corrects the tape drive Internal Self Test(IST) not to time out if the
X23 tape is and the end of the tape when inserted.
-
Correct IST abort when the eject button is pushed.
-
Correct additional cause for stuck tape.
-
Corrects some aborted command handling
-
Correct end of data writing(full tape write) in VXA-2 mode.
-
Reduced fan duty cycle to reduce air flow in the media path to reduce
the effects of environmental contamination on the drive and media.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3233
| A1700D5D
| April 2009
|
- Improved tape handling to keep the drive head clean(scrubbing)
reducing media errors.
-
Improvements to the tape drive internal self test to properly detect
supported media, and reduce maximum test time.
-
Insure cartridges eject when the drive detects an over temperature
condition.
-
Added extended sense byte 44 for last cleaning tape was expired
is bit = 1 and sense byte 46 for current drive temperature as a
hex value in centigrade.
-
Correct cause of I/O error, blank tape being indicated.
-
Corrected filemark detection problem.
|
95P1974
| 95P1976
| 3234
| A1700D5D
| November 2009
|
- Fix one cause of tape load failure
- Improved End Of Data(EOD) handing.
|
The microcode update will bring the IBM 160GB VXA-320 tape drive
up to the current level of microcode which is:
3234
Table 2. Microcode History
Tape Drive P/N
| Tape Drive FRU P/N
| Microcode Level
| Load ID
| Date Released
| What does this microcode change
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 310F
| A1700D5E
| Feb 2006
|
-
First Microcode level shipped.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3202
| A1700D5E
| June 2006
|
-
Insure cleaning LED is on when the tape drive exceeds the time since
last cleaned maximum.
-
Turn on the cleaning required LED for any media error.
-
Update the Vital Product Data(VPD) for P/N's 95P1975, and 95P1977
to remove the "H0" from the VPD
-
When a tape drive is powered off prior to rewinding the tape
after writing data to
the tape, the next time the tape drive powers on the drive does a
"Format Recovery". This microcode level implements a LED sequence for
this format recovery.
-
Improve handling of tape ejection when the tape drive exceeds the tape
maximum temperature.
-
Change Cleaning cartridge part number to current part
number for AIX diagnostics.
Change from 19P4880 to 24R2138.
-
Correct
cause of time out on AIX cfgmgr command.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3206
| A1700D5E
| Jan 2007
|
-
Correct
the cause of tape drive time out.
(TAPE_ERR4 and TAPE_ERR4 with SCSI_ERR10)
-
Add tape drive and media "Dead bits" to the sense data returned by
the drive for use by the IBM support centers in problem determination.
The drive "Dead bit" is
set by the drive if the drive determines the drive needs
service(the drive will fail AIX diagnostics if this bit is set).
The drive media "Dead bit" and or the media "warning" bit are set
are set if the drive determines the media must be replaced(media "Dead
bit" or if the
drive determines the media is coming to the end of its useful
life(media "warning" bit).
-
If the tape drive is inactive(no tape motion commands) for 30 minutes
the tape drive will rewind the tape back into the cartridge to
keep the media out of the airflow in the drive. This will reduce
some of the impact of customer environment on the media. This will
lengthen the time the tape drive takes to start writing after 30 minutes
of inactivity but will not effect the user application.
-
If the tape drive is unable to determine a tape format on a write
to the tape, from the beginning of the tape, the tape drive will
format the tape, including the vendor area, during the write. This
"Format-on-the-Fly" will make some tapes that previously could
not be written to without errors be able to be written to without
errors.The first use of the tape after this
"Format-on-the-Fly" may take a few minutes longer as the vendor area
of the tape is reconstructed.
-
Decrease the cleaning interval where the tape drive will
request cleaning from 75 tape motion hours to 25 tape motion
hours. This was done to reduce debris build up on the tape
drive heads.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3207
| A1700D5E
| April 2007
|
-
Increase the cleaning interval where the tape drive will
request cleaning from 25 tape motion hours to 75 tape motion
hours as it was prior to microcode level 3206.
-
Increase the amount of time the tape drive is cleaning the drive
head from 5 seconds to 10 seconds.
This was done to reduce debris build up on the tape
drive heads.
This will reduce the number of cleanings on the IBM cleaning
cartridge. The cleaning cartridges will now clean the drive twice
as long and you will get half the number of cleanings you would have
gotten with the cleaning cartridge prior to this microcode change.
-
Improve handling of large blocksize writes where the data is being
delivered to the drive very slowly by the system.
-
Correct the
drive issue with Linux where drive
negotiations are ignored after a bus reset if
the drive disconnects.
-
Improved End of Tape(EOT) handling
-
Change internal drive communications to the system to
return Sense Key 02 , ASC/ASCQ 3003 when cleaning tape is in drive.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 320C
| A1700D5E
| July 2007
|
-
Correction
for stuck tape when the eject button is pressed and the tape drive
was in hibernation mode.
-
Correct the cause for premature cleaning requests.
-
Implement a Drive SELF-TEST Procedure. The details of the drive
self test procedure on in the Drive SELF-TEST Procedure section of this
README.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 320E
| A1700D5E
| Nov 2007
|
-
Correct issues with unused(brand new) data tapes after the first
write to the tape. The issue corrected was in
calculating the position data was written on the tape after the first
write to a brand new tape.
-
Correction
for handling 16 byte SCSI commands. Previously
the drive would accept a 16 byte
cmd and disconnect, but never reconnected. The correction
is so the drive will
correctly reject a 16 byte cmd.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3221
| A1700D5E
| Jan 2008
|
-
Fast Eject from Media Preservation mode. If a user presses the eject
button when the tape is in media preservation mode the tape will eject
more rapidly then before(under 1 minute). The reload of the tape will
take longer as the tape was ejected without rewinding and the reloading
of the tape will cause the tape to be rewound.
-
Improved Emergency Eject function to eject the tape in more failed
situations.
-
Improve the drive Internal Self Test(IST).
-
Improve write error recovery retry.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3231
| A1700D5E
| Aug 2008
|
-
Corrects the tape drive Internal Self Test(IST) not to time out if the
X23 tape is and the end of the tape when inserted.
-
Correct IST abort when the eject button is pushed.
-
Correct additional cause for stuck tape.
-
Corrects some aborted command handling
-
Correct end of data writing(full tape write) in VXA-2 mode.
-
Reduced fan duty cycle to reduce air flow in the media path to reduce
the effects of environmental contamination on the drive and media.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3233
| A1700D5E
| April 2009
|
- Improved tape handling to keep the drive head clean(scrubbing)
reducing media errors.
-
Improvements to the tape drive internal self test to properly detect
supported media, and reduce maximum test time.
-
Insure cartridges eject when the drive detects an over temperature
condition.
-
Added extended sense byte 44 for last cleaning tape was expired
is bit = 1 and sense byte 46 for current drive temperature as a
hex value in centigrade.
-
Correct cause of I/O error, blank tape being indicated.
-
Corrected filemark detection problem.
|
95P1975
| 95P1977
| 3234
| A1700D5E
| November 2009
|
- Fix one cause of tape load failure
- Improved End Of Data(EOD) handing.
|
Note: In some cases you may already have the most current level of
microcode already installed. The following instructions
show you how to check the tape drive microcode level.
To display the level of microcode in the IBM 7206-220 or the internal
160GB VXA-320 tape drive do the following AIX command:
lscfg -vl rmt0 <--- change the drive number to reflect
the actual rmt address of the 160GB
VXA-320 tape drive.
The output of the lscfg command will look like the following with
the
"Device Specific.(Z1)" showing the microcode level:
rmt0 P1/Z1-A8 LVD SCSI Tape Drive (160000 MB)
Manufacturer................IBM
Machine Type and Model......VXA-3
Device Specific.(Z1)........3234
Serial Number...............20000062
Device Specific.(LI)........A1700D5D
Part Number.................95P1974
FRU Number..................95P1976
EC Level....................H81466
Device Specific.(Z0)........0180050283000130
Device Specific.(Z3)........L1
rmt0 P1/Z1-A8 LVD SCSI Tape Drive (160000 MB)
Manufacturer................IBM
Machine Type and Model......VXA-3 H0
Device Specific.(Z1)........310F
Serial Number...............25000243
Device Specific.(LI)........A1700D5E
Part Number.................95P1975
FRU Number..................95P1977
EC Level....................H81466
Device Specific.(Z0)........0180030283000130
Device Specific.(Z3)........L1
The microcode level 3202 removed the "H0" from
the Vital Product Data.
rmt0 P1/Z1-A8 LVD SCSI Tape Drive (160000 MB)
Manufacturer................IBM
Machine Type and Model......VXA-3
Device Specific.(Z1)........3234
Serial Number...............25000243
Device Specific.(LI)........A1700D5E
Part Number.................95P1975
FRU Number..................95P1977
EC Level....................H81466
Device Specific.(Z0)........0180030283000130
Device Specific.(Z3)........L1
There are 2 ways a user can get the microcode files.
Each of these will put the microcode on the user's system but the
user may have to move the files to appropriate directory for system
use.
When the user downloads the microcode files from the IBM web site the
packaged microcode files will be put into the
/tmp
directory.
- If the user downloads the
VXA320.bin
file the user will put the downloaded file into the
/tmp
directory and then use the instructions in the section of this README
titled
"AIX bin file".
- If the user downloads the
TapeVXA320GB-3234-01.rpm
file the user will put the downloaded file into the
/tmp
directory and then use the instructions in the section of this README
titled
"RPM file".
- If the CD-ROM process is used to put the
VXA320.bin
file on the user system the microcode files will expanded into the
/tmp/VXA320_web
directory.
The next step is to follow the instructions in this README titled
"AIX bin file"
and copy the files to the appropriate directory.
The building and putting of the files into the
/tmp/VXA320_web
directory was done by the user when they used the CD-ROM build
instructions.
- If the CD-ROM process is used to put the
TapeVXA320-3234-01.rpm
file on the user system the microcode files will be in the
tmp/microcode/RPM
directory. To put the microcode in the appropriate directory for the
system the user executes the following AIX commands:
cd /tmp/microcode/RPM
rpm -ihv --ignoreos TapeVXA320-3234-01.rpm
This puts the following files in the /etc/microcode directory for
system use:
- VXA-3.A1700D5D.dsdata
- VXA-3.A1700D5D.3234
- VXA-3.A1700D5E.dsdata
- VXA-3.A1700D5E.3234
The next step is to follow the instructions in this README titled
"Verifying the Microcode".
Note:
AIX commands and file names are case sensitive.
If the users AIX permission does not allow the copy to the above stated
directory or file then the user will be prompted for a new location.
- Download the
TapeVXA320-3234-01.rpm
file to the eServer pSeries or RS/6000 to the
/tmp
directory.
- To expand the
TapeVXA320-3234-01.rpm
file use the following commands:
cd /tmp
rpm -ihv --ignoreos TapeVXA320-3234-01.rpm
- This will put the following files in the
/etc/microcode
directory:
- VXA-3.A1700D5D.dsdata
- VXA-3.A1700D5D.3234
- VXA-3.A1700D5E.dsdata
- VXA-3.A1700D5E.3234
To insure the file was downloaded without error do the
following:
- Change to the directory where you just put the microcode.
cd /tmp/VXA320_web
or
cd /etc/microcode
- Use the AIX command sum to verify the checksum of the microcode
file:
sum VXA-3*
- Compare the sum you got with the sum of the microcode files here, if
they do not match recheck your steps in creating the file on the
system:
40174 1025 VXA-3.A1700D5D.3234
42348 3 VXA-3.A1700D5D.dsdata
55133 1025 VXA-3.A1700D5E.3234
28460 3 VXA-3.A1700D5E.dsdata
AIX diagnostics requires the microcode file
and the dsdata file to be in the /etc/microcode directory.
Copy the Dsdata and Microcode files to appropriate directory
for use by AIX diagnostics.
Note: The copy command copies the file to the new directory with the
same name when you use the period(.) after new directory name.
If you downloaded the
RPM
file and executed it the microcode is in
the correct directory with the correct name for AIX diagnostic use.
If you downloaded the .bin
file and executed it then you need to do
the following AIX commands:
cd /tmp/VXA_web
cp VXA-3.A1700D5D.dsdata /etc/microcode/.
cp VXA-3.A1700D5D.3234 /etc/microcode/.
cp VXA-3.A1700D5E.dsdata /etc/microcode/.
cp VXA-3.A1700D5E.3234 /etc/microcode/.
There are 2 ways to do the microcode download using the AIX
diagnostics.
- Using the AIX Diagnostics menu
- Using the AIX Diagnostics via command line input.
To use the AIX 5.1 diagnostics menu for microcode download do the
following:
Note: There are differences between AIX levels of AIX Diagnostics.
In some cases the step after Task selection is Microcode Tools, or
Download Microcode. The following steps are general instructions
to download microcode.
diag (enter)
Task Selection (enter)
Download Microcode (enter)
Select the drive you wish to download microcode to and follow
the system instructions.
Note: When the system asks where the microcode file is to be
found select
/etc/microcode, not diskette.
The command line to download microcode will use the highest
level of microcode in the /etc/microcode directory for the device
selected. To use the AIX 5.1 diagnostics command line input for
microcode download do the following:
Note: If the previous level of microcode is not in the /etc/microcode
directory you will need to use the -f option(force) as the diagnostics
expect the previous level to be present in the /etc/microcode directory.
Note: If the microcode download fails install:
- Insure the checksum is correct for the files that you have downloaded
- If the download to the tape drive fails, use the eject button on the
tape drive to reset the drive. Some microcode download failures leave
the drive in way that the tape drive will not complete a download without
the tape drive being reset.
To reset the tape drive press the eject button and hold the eject button
pressed in for 20 seconds, this will cause a drive reset.
diag -c -d rmt0 -T "download" (enter)
or
diag -c -d rmt0 -T "download -f" (enter)
The following procedure is designed to allow you to quickly perform a
complete set of diagnostic tests on your VXA-2 tape drive,
without impacting server operation. This 5 ¼ minute test can also be
used to verify good performance of individual VXA tape cartridges.
- Verify that a tape cartridge is not loaded in drive.
To unload a
cartridge, press the eject button on the front of the drive.
-
To Start Drive SELF-TEST:
Press and hold the eject button for 7 seconds, until the green Ready
LED starts flashing rapidly, then release the button. The Ready LED
will continue flashing, indicating that the drive is waiting for a
cartridge to be inserted.
-
Start the self-test by inserting IBM Test Tape P/N 24R2135 into the
drive. If an IBM Test Tape is not available, you can substitute a
scratch (blank) VXA data cartridge.
Note:
Important!
Use a blank cartridge that does
not contain customer data. During this self-test, the cartridge will
be rewritten with a test pattern and any customer data will be destroyed.
Overall test duration is about 5 ¼ minutes.
Note:
-
A cartridge must be loaded within 15 seconds -- otherwise, the drive
will automatically revert back to normal operation. If necessary, return
to step 1 to reenter diagnostic mode.
-
Use a cartridge that is not write-protected. If a write-protected
cartridge is inserted while the drive is in diagnostic mode, the
cartridge will be ejected -- see step below.
-
Self-testing can only be performed using a write-compatible
cartridge type, and with a cartridge that is not
damaged -- see step below.
-
If a cleaning cartridge is inserted while the drive is in diagnostic
mode, cleaning will occur and the drive will then return to normal
operating mode. To reenter diagnostic mode, return to the "Enter
Diagnostic Mode" step.
-
At any time, self-testing can be stopped by pressing the eject button.
After a current test operation is completed, the cartridge will be
ejected and drive will return to normal operation.
-
While self-testing is in progress, the Ready LED will
continue to flash. The following 3 test steps are performed:
-
The initialization
sequence has an approximate duration of 20 seconds.
The Activity LED indicates tape movement.
-
The hardware
test has an approximate duration of 2 minutes. During that
time, a static test is performed on the drive's electrical components,
and proper operation of the cartridge load/unload mechanism is verified.
-
The write/read test
has an approximate duration of 3 minutes. The
Activity LED indicates tape movement.
When self-testing has completed successfully and no problems were
detected,
the cartridge is unloaded from the drive and all LEDs are off.
Proper function of both the drive and tape cartridge have been verified.
Note: When the Amber Clean LED remains on, it indicates that
self-testing has completed successfully -- but cleaning is required.
Clean the drive by inserting an IBM Cleaning Cartridge (P/N 24R2138).
The drive is no longer in diagnostic mode, and has been returned to
normal operation.
When a drive problem is detected,
the cartridge will remain loaded
inside the drive and the Amber Fault LED ( ! ) will flash.
Following a self-test failure, the tape cartridge will remain loaded
inside drive, and the drive will remain in diagnostic mode. Press the
eject button to unload tape cartridge and return drive to normal
operation.
Repeat self-test using another tape cartridge, If the test passes
replace any defective media.
If the test again failed contact IBM Service for assistance.
When a media problem is detected,
the cartridge will remain loaded
inside the drive, and the Amber Clean LED will flash.
Repeat self-test using another tape cartridge, and replace any defective
media.
When the drive has determined that an incorrect tape cartridge was
inserted, the cartridge is unloaded and both the Activity and
Clean LEDs will flash. Self-testing cannot be performed if
the inserted cartridge is one of the following:
- Write-protected
- Damaged
- Media type that is not write-compatible with the drive
Press the eject button, to end self-test and return the drive to normal
operating mode. Then return to step 1 and run the self-test using a
suitable cartridge.
Following a self-test failure, the tape cartridge will remain loaded
inside drive, and the drive will remain in diagnostic mode. Press the
eject button to unload tape cartridge and return drive to normal
operation.