I need some help! I have a Sun Enterprise 250 server with a deceased internal DDS4 tape drive. Our vendor told us "any" DDS4 tape drive should work. We picked up an SONY 20/40GB Ultra 160 DDS4 drive - Sony part number SDT11000/BM - as well as a 50 to 68 pin adapter. Unfortunately the server is not picking up the drive on the SCSI chain. Any ideas?
I only took a quick glance at the product, on Sony's web site.
The "Product Description Manual" hints that the SCSI target ID
can be set to a large number of preferences. (page 19 of 179)
http://sony.storagesupport.com/dds/sdt_11000.htm
That manual also hints that the Single-Ended/Low Voltage Differential
function is automatic. (page 6 of 179)
Set the SCSI ID to 4 if it's at a different default ID.
(That's the historic setting for the first internal tape drive.)
You're using a Narrow SCSI controller inside the E250, so can only use 0-7.
The drive can self-terminate, or not. Your choice, using DIP switches.
(see page 23 of 179 in the product manual).
Termination can effect whether it is active in the SCSI chain.
Pehaps others have some suggestions.
Thank you for responding. We tried using device ID 4 both with termination "on" and "off" to no avail. Our server has what appears to be a 64-bit PCI slot. Will an Adaptec Ultra160 Controller work in this server? The operating system is Sun v5.7 release 4. We are strating to think the problem is us trying to use newer technology on an very old system.
Thank you,
Jen
Jen,
When I read your initial post, I made an assumption that you were
replacing an internal tape drive. (A drive bay does exist under the optical drive
and is commonly used for DDS4 drives.)
Is this tape peripheral an external drive in its own self-powered housing?
Then the external Single-Ended SCSI port should work fine, albeit at a 40MB/sec data rate.
No, Adaptec and SPARC don't mix very well.
The systemboard firmware wouldn't even recognize its presence.
The Adaptec card would be appropriate for a PC, not your E250.
The X6540A Single-Ended Dual SCSI adapter card, or the
X6758A LVD Dual-SCSI adapter card would be the choices to consider.
http://sunsolve.sun.com/handbook_pub/Systems/E250/components.html#SCSI
Hook everything up as you hope for it to be in production.
Drop the system to OBP and do ...
OK setenv auto-boot? false <enter>
OK reset-all <enter>
The computer will reboot, and automatically stop at the OK prompt with clear data buffers.
Then do ...
OK probe-scsi-all <enter>
Capture the entire output and paste it back here.
Thank you for the information. We are indeed replacing an internal drive with a new internal drive. Will the card you referenced still work for us?
My guy still needs to get out to the office with this server this week. I hope to get him out there on Wednesday. I will be back in touch.
Thank you,
Jen
Aahh, there is a space for a tape drive, but I don't think there is a connection on the cable to succeed... If I remember correctly, there was an extra cable that came with the Sun tape kit... that is maybe why he was asking about a scsi card.
you may be better off with an external tape drive (or robot)...
best of luck!
haroldkarl
Hello Harold,
We picked up an SONY 20/40GB Ultra 160 DDS4 drive - Sony part number SDT11000/BM - as well as a 50 to 68 pin adapter.
... and I missed that they already used a 50 to 68 pin adapter.
The internal SCSI controller of the E250 is UW-SCSI dual-channel.
The drives in the RMA (Removable Media Assembly) are attached to the backplane (with the upto 6 hard disks) with a 50 pin ribbon cable.
The narrow SCSI devices can be assigned the SCSI IDs 0-6 (6 is used for the CD-ROM, 7 for the controller, 0 and 8-12 are hardwired to the backplane for the internal disks).
I think the 50 pin ribbon cable contains an active terminator behind the CD-ROM. If the termination is activated on the DDS4, the CD-ROM "vanishes".
Jen, please re-check the SCSI ID of the DDS4. If you assigned an ID with none of the low bits (1,2 or 4) on, this is interpreted as 0. But 0 is the first internal hard disk, which responds faster to the inquiry than the DDS4.
Did the DDS4 work in another system and/or succesfully passes its power-on selftest ? Maybe the drive is faulty.
Michael
Hello Jen.
thank you for the feedback ! Due to the fact that this isn't offical Sun support and all contributors volunteer, the feedback is the only reward.
I think using the DDS4 in an external enclosure, is the preferred choice.
Hopefully the enclose doesn't require the 50p-to-68p adapter which limits the bus (and transferrate) to 8 bit SCSI. The internal controller of the E250 is 16 bit SCSI, but only Ultra SCSI.
Maybe you can later add a LVD/SE SCSI controller for enhanced performance.
Michael
