can't restore dds4 archive

[maxhowarth 3]

i'm trying to restore a very old dds4 backup. i've installed an adaptec 2940uw in an old 733qs g4 (with os9.2 on one drive) and have got hold of a compaq dds4 (sdt-10000) drive. and also installed retrospect 5.1 from our retro6 installer cd.

 

i try to restore even one file from a tape the progress bar and the drive (after winding to the appropriate spot) just sit there and do nothing. there is no activity on the drive (busy/tape/etc) and as far as i can see nothing else happens. if i try to verify a tape i might get 4 or 5 files into the verify then it grinds to a halt.

 

my (admittedly hazy) recollection is that we were using retro4 at the time and this required the advanced driver kit. if i'm using retro5.1 i shouldn't need this, right?

 

any suggestions as to how i can progress?

 

 

Edited May 27, 2008 by Guest
more detail added

[Mayoff 124]

No added drivers should be needed.

 

Are you able to write and verify data on a new tape or does that hang too?

 

This could be a simple SCSI problem. Does this Mac have built in SCSI you can try?

[maxhowarth 3]

hi robin, thanks for the input.

 

no it doesn't unfortunately. and even if it did i don't have a single other piece of scsi gear other than this ultrawide stuff.

 

i will try a write on a new tape though and see what happens.

[maxhowarth 3]

okay. new tape tried and failed.

 

as before the backup starts promisingly for a moment (a few seconds) but then the process stalls. looking at the log i can see i get a stream of -36 errors.

 

i'm wondering if it's possible to try the whole thing on a pc but i'm worried that the adaptec card won't work in a pc.

[dinotech 0]

It looks a bit like the problem I encounter. No files are being restored. But you say Retrospect just stops.

Does the mouse that becomes 2 wheels keep turning or it goes out of the progress window?

 

Thanks

 

Dino

[Mayoff 124]

-36 is not coming from the tape. This is a disk error, probably for the source. The source disk could be failing. Run Disk tools on the drive.

[maxhowarth 3]

yes dino the two wheels icon just spin and spin. every once in a while (maybe every minute) it changes back to the pointer icon then back to the wheels after a few seconds.

 

robin, i tried to backup to a new tape from both the os9 drive and also the other internal drive (which has 10.3.9 on it), they both gave that error. could they really both be failing?

 

tomorrow i'll install 9.2.2 onto an external drive and see if that helps. it would certainly rule out the internal drives.

 

really appreciate your input chaps.

[Mayoff 124]

-36 is coming from the Mac OS. It is a bad error and not coming from your tape drive. The log will tell you something like "trouble reading", "trouble scanning" or "can't update catalog". This will help you see the source of the problem.

[maxhowarth 3]

the log reads "-36 (i/o error, bad media?)'

 

out of curiosity i tried backing up then restoring some files from the os9 drive to a file (also on the os9 drive) to see if the drive behaved itself. it worked flawlessly. does this prove anything?

[maxhowarth 3]

final step: did a fresh install of os9.2 onto a usb drive and booted from that. installed retro5.1 and repeated the entire process. it's exactly the same; works for a few seconds then hangs. interestingly the log doesn't show any errors this time – it just sits there too.