IBM Linear Tape File System Library Edition

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Highlights

  • Simplify direct access and management of selected tape drives and tape libraries and their data
  • Incorporate the IBM® Linear Tape File System™ format standard for reading, writing and exchanging descriptive metadata on certified tape cartridges
  • Tag files with any text, allowing for more intuitive searches of cartridge, drive and library content

The Linear Tape File System is the first file system that works in conjunction with LTO tape technology to set a new standard for ease of use and portability for open systems tape storage. With this system, accessing data stored on an IBM tape cartridge is as easy and intuitive as using a USB flash drive. And with the operating system’s graphical file manager, reading data on a tape cartridge is as easy as dragging and dropping. Users can run any application designed for disk files against tape data without concern for the fact that the data is physically stored on tape.

The Linear Tape File System offers two different editions. The Single Drive Edition allows access to all of the data in a cartridge loaded on a single drive as if it were on disk. The Library Edition adds support for multiple cartridges in a tape library, and automatically loads the cartridge per file access. Both editions use the file system’s format and resources of the operating system (OS) on which it is running to graphically display the contents of a tape library in the OS graphical user interface (GUI) format, typically a folder/tree structure. Both editions support LTO Ultrium generation 6 and 5 as well as IBM System Storage® TS1140 Tape Drives.

The metadata of each cartridge, once mounted, is cached in server memory. Metadata operations, such as browse directory and filename search, do not require tape movement.

The Linear Tape File System provides a software solution—IBM Linear Tape File System Storage Manager—to manage and monitor archive and restore files. This software solution provides storage lifecycle management of multimedia files to reduce the cost of digital content archive software licensing while also reducing video tape cartridge costs.

Linear Tape File System Storage Manager offers a more integrated solution to tape library users. While both the Single Drive Edition and the Library Edition of the Linear Tape File System can write data on the tape, the software provides the tools that use metadata to arrange, search and manage the files at users’ convenience, according to the policies they decide.

Linear Tape File System is a significant step in moving tape storage away from its reputation as complex and difficult to use. Unlike disk storage, tape has previously required device-specific software to read, write and manage data stored on its cartridges in libraries. Even with tape management software, file access was not intuitive, as it required users to know which cartridge volume contained the files they needed. Further, because operating systems were not typically shipped with built-in tape library support, standard OS disk interfaces did not enable direct reading and writing to tape cartridges stored in tape libraries.

IBM recognises that in order to be an attractive, more widely usable storage medium, tape must be as easy to use as any other medium, such as disk or removable flash. Such ease of use requires a file system interface that behaves like disk, as well as the flash-drive-like ability to share data without regard to platform.

Designed to meet these needs, the Linear Tape File System Library Edition, along with Linear Tape File System Storage Manager, enables users to:

  • Manage scheduling and access of tape cartridges in multiple drives
  • Recognise the cartridges in a library at library mount time and create a file system directory under the library for each cartridge; optionally, the cartridges' file system directories can be pre-populated with information from the cached index at library mount time, allowing users to list and search the contents of all known tape cartridges without having to physically load each cartridge into a tape drive
  • Support on-disk metadata, an option which enables storing data on disk space instead of memory space, allowing the Linear Tape File System to handle a larger number of cartridges
  • Support data path failover, in addition to control path failover, by using an IBM tape drive

Product features

  • Provides a basic read/write interface to the tape library for applications without any additional operating systems
  • Reduces restore times and enables optimal utilisation of tape and library resources
  • Features 1:1 mapping of tape cartridges to file folders and tape libraries

Hardware summary

  • The IBM Linear Tape File System provides direct, intuitive and graphical access to data stored in IBM tape drives and libraries using LTO Ultrium generation 6 and 5 tape cartridges, as well as IBM System Storage 3592 tape cartridges. The Linear Tape File System eliminates the need for additional tape management and software to access data.

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