dschanin Posted October 20, 2004 Report Share Posted October 20, 2004 I am running Retro 6.5, which works fine with my tape drive. I am attempting to use the Memorex drive referenced above for a DVD backup. The drive configures fine, reads and writes a test disk, and pronounces the drive ready for use. But when I try to run a backup and insert a blank disk (same type as it used to configure drive), it claims that the disk is WRITE PROTECTED? DVDs can't be write protected as far as I know. I do not have any other DVD or CD software running that is grabbing control. Have tried NT passthrough as well as APSI. No luck. Anyone have a clue? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralEclectic Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 I've seen this "write protected" error too, with DVD-R media. I have no idea about the underlying cause, but it wouldn't surprise me if it's related to the problem I posted about below regarding inability to write to virgin RW media. It appears to me that Dantz has quite a few unresolved issues with interfacing to DVD writers. Given the apparent lack of interest on their part to address known reproducible issues, I'd recommend not holding my breath while awaiting an answer. I've said it before, but it bears repeating: Dantz would do themselves and their customers a HUGE FAVOR by licensing the Nero DVD engine from Ahead Software. Their stuff works correctly with everything. It's obvious that Dantz does not have a firm grasp on the DVD interface, and I have very little confidence in the backups I've made to DVDs with Dantz software. And the absence of official Dantz support in this area does nothing to build confidence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhal Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Do you have nero or easy cd installed? Both of those software programs have a drag to disk program that is normally installed in a "full" install. These "drag to disk" programs are the culprit for many problems, not just with retrospect, as they install drivers that supercede the system drivers and often grab complete control of the device. You did say that you have no other dvd or cd software running, however take another look for these programs because they load with the system and it is not obvious that they are loaded. If you find you have one installed, do a complete uninstall of the nero/easy and then custom re-install nero/eash without the 'drag to disk' program (such as InCD). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dschanin Posted October 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Thanks for the info. I did have Nero installed, and removed it and the Intel Accelerator. No change. Does other DVD media, i.e. not -R media, work better? It seems amazing to me that the software has no trouble configuring the drive, which requires that it read and write to the media several times. Yet trying to do a backup yields a WRITE PROTECTED error. It took me nearly a month to get the tape drive to work with Retrospect. Seems this software is really lousy. If it was free, that would be one thing. But given how much I had to pay for it, one would expect it to work! Any other ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralEclectic Posted October 22, 2004 Report Share Posted October 22, 2004 Yeah, it would be one thing if they had good support, but to demand $70 to report *their* problems is expecting too much. And then there's a good chance that any fixes won't be a no-charge "upgrade" to what you already have that doesn't work right. I can't say I'm too happy with these guys. Basically I've paid for this product and have yet to experience a smooth, trouble-free backup to either tape or DVD. Anyway, one thing I've discovered that's a show-stopper with Retrospect and DVDs is any version of ASPI loaded. The symptoms I had differed from yours, but there's no good to come of ASPI and Retrospect coexistence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhal Posted October 22, 2004 Report Share Posted October 22, 2004 Unfortunately this is a process of elimination, next confirm whether you have firmware updated. See the link at http://www.memorex.com/service_support/software_display.php?id=456&dl=p Seems to have several versions of firmware for your model, so it is important to get the right one. (you also have rdu 5.3 installed?) After the update, try toggling the secret prefs <ctrl> <alt> <p> <p> and look for /execution/use nt passthru. Change the option (i.e. if it is checked, uncheck, and if it is unchecked, then check it). My drive works best with it checked. Once you change this option, you need to close Retrospect and restart it to test if it helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dschanin Posted October 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2004 Thanks for the suggestions. Unfortunately, all have been tried. The Memorex site actually is really poor, and lists 3 "Firmware Updtaes" for the drive (rev 1,2, and3), and each one is completely different in format, execution, and type of application. None the less, I tried each and only one worked, updating the firmware from G1 to G2. The drive now appears to work even worse. I have no idea what the other two programs are supposed to do, but they say I do not have the drive they are looking for despite the fact that that the description says I do. Go figure. I will see if Memorex has more info. I have tried both the NT passthru as well as the alternative - none work. It took me a month to get my tape drive to work, but at least now it works reliably. This DVD support is broken and pitiful, particularly considering the price we pay for the software. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natew Posted October 27, 2004 Report Share Posted October 27, 2004 Hi Just to confirm: you are running Retrospect 6.5.350 and driver update 5.2 right? The configure->devices->environment tab will show specifics about the drive name, firmware and driver that is loading. Can you post that info please? Thanks Nate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dschanin Posted November 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 The Retrospect version number you quote is correct, but I have a later driver update - 5.3.103 - that I have installed. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natew Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Hi Can you please post the line about your drive as listed in configure->devices->environment? the more detail the better. Thanks Nate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dschanin Posted November 11, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2004 The line reads: 2:0 Memorex DVD+/-RW True8Xn 1.G2 Hope this is what you requested. As mentioned earlier, I have tried "Using ASPI" as well as "NT Passthrough" both with the same results. The drive works fine with other CD/DVD software such as Nero. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natew Posted November 16, 2004 Report Share Posted November 16, 2004 Thanks for the info. The bad news is Dantz hasn't tested this drive so I don't have any information about what kind of hardware it really is (memorex does not manufacture drives - they buy them from someone else and rebrand). If the Retrospect drive configuration wizard fails with all media types then there isn't a whole lot more we can do. Something about the firmware/hardware just doesn't like the read/write commands that Retrospect sends to the device. As a result Retrospect can't reliably read and write to the drive. Reliablity is the key. Retrospect may just have lower tolerance for error than the other burning programs you use. Over all this is a good thing because it protects your chances of a successful backup down the road. Doesn't make it any less aggrivating now though... Hope that helps. Nate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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