SUMMARY (kind of): Reading tapes on 2.4 x86

From: Sean Boran 4428 (t016479%et@chgvau01.ch.swissbank.com)
Date: Thu Feb 09 1995 - 08:14:50 CST


Sysadmins,

First of all I apologise for my weird "from" addr - where is that sendmail book
again!?#$??

The original question:

> I'm trying to tranfer files to a PC running Solaris2.4 from
> a SPARC running either 2.3 or 2.4. I use simply:
>
> tar cf /dev/rmt/0
>
> on the source machine.
>
> On the PC (target) I get an scsi error saying
> "Error command for read" and "Incorrect Length Indicator Set".
> I have tried setting a blocksize with the tar "b" option, but it doesn't help.
>
>
> It doesn't seem to make a difference whether the source tape
> was made on a solaris1 or 2.4 machine, so I assume
> the problem is with the solaris 2.4 x86 tar...

Well I haven't yet found the solution. I also tried using "dd" on a small
file - the error was the same. Tar to/from raw diskettes works fine.
I also installed a 2.4 Tar jumbo patch - no help.

I suspect the (pretty primitive) AHA scsi card to be responsible. Either
that or I need to twiddle the tape parameters in (the x86 equivalent of)
st.conf. I am using an exabyte 8505.
As I'm only using the pc now & then (at home) it will take me a while
to find the solution. I'll post as new summary then.

Here is a summary of replies received:
--------------------------------------

From: Mick.Morgan@gate.ccta.gov.uk (Mick Morgan)
> Why not string the two machines together and use ftp?

Simple: one machine is at home, the other at work!

From: Leonard Sitongia <sitongia@zia.hao.ucar.edu>
> I don't know about tar on 2.4 SPARC, but I transfer data from my
> Sun running 2.3 solaris to my x86 2.4 pc using an exabyte 8200. I
> explicitly specify the block size on the Sun, such as "tar cbf 126 /dev..."
> and do the same on the PC, explicitly specifying the block size on the
> tar read.

Hmmm... This means the problem is probably the AHA driver config.

From: admin@maryanne.UCSD.EDU (System Administrator)
> tar cf /dev/rmt0

no comment.

From: fan@tammy.cath.upmc.edu (Ningping Fan)
> I have been successfuly transferred tar tapes between Solaris X86 & Sparc
> using QIC-150MB tape drive.
>
> On Sparc, using
> %tar cf /dev/rst4 .

The problem is not on the sparc side IMHO.

Regards,

sean

|Sean Boran Tel (switz.): 022-376.44.28 |
|Swiss Bank Corporation Email: sean@ge.ch.swissbank.com |
|Geneva, Switzerland |
|_________________________________________________________________|



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