This lowers the chances of lost data because the head has only a small area of the tape to read, especially as data densities increase. And the system can change drive speed on the fly, so that if data proves hard to read, the system slows the tape and re-reads the packet. Tape speed can also vary according to data input rates, eliminating backhitching because of tape overrun.

Working at up to 6MB/s compressed, the 33GB VXA drive stripes 387 packets across the tape, assigning each packet a unique address. This means that packets can be stored in any order and the data reassembled on the fly (using a built-in buffer) during later restore operations.

An innovative new answer for an old problem.

This article appears in the January 2000 issue of PC Magazine UK

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