Resolving errors with the Ultrium tape drives

This article lists error codes that can appear on the single-character display (SCD) of the Ultrium tape drives and describes each error.

The Ultrium tape drive has an SCD that displays a code which can aid in servicing the drive. While the TS3500 Tape Library is active, it can be difficult to see the SCD without opening the library door. An easier way to obtain information about a drive error is to determine which drive is reporting an error, then access that drive's error log by using the library's operator panel or by using the Tape Library Specialist web interface. You can access a drive error log from the operator panel by using the Service and Drive Error Logs menus.

Figure 1 shows the front of the Ultrium tape drive and the location of the SCD.

1	Status light	3	Single-character display (SCD)
2	Unload button	4	SCD dot

Figure 1. Front view of the Ultrium 3 tape drive

Table 1 gives the SCD error codes for the Ultrium tape drives. Use this table only if no sense data is available. Whenever possible, use sense data or a drive's Fault Symptom Code (FSC) instead of the SCD code. For information about sense data, see the IBM TotalStorage LTO Ultrium Tape Drive SCSI Reference. For information about FSCs, see the IBM® System Storage™ TS3500 Tape Library Maintenance Information guide.

Table 1. SCD error codes for the Ultrium Tape Drives

SCD Code	Description
0	No Error. Ran successfully.
1	Cooling problem.
2	5V dc power problem. Tape drive detected that the Drive Power Supply is approaching the specified voltage limit (drive is still operating) or is outside the specified voltage range (drive is not operating).
3	Tape drive determined that a microcode error occurred.
4	Microcode or tape drive problem. Tape drive determined that a microcode or tape drive hardware failure occurred.
5	Tape drive problem. Tape drive determined that a hardware failure occurred.
6	Tape drive or media error. Tape drive determined that an error occurred, but it cannot isolate the error due to faulty hardware or to the tape cartridge.
7	Media error.
8	Tape drive, SCSI bus or fibre channel error.
9	Tape drive or RS-422 error.
A	Tape drive hardware problem.
B	No error or message is assigned.
C	Tape drive needs to be cleaned.
D	No error or message is assigned.
=	The Unload button on the drive was pushed in and did not release.

Source:
http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/ts3500tl/v1r0/topic/com.ibm.storage.ts3500.doc/opg_3584_a69m4bfs0.html