FuzzyJohn Posted December 4, 2002 Report Share Posted December 4, 2002 I checked all cables and terminators for this drive and I am still getting the Error -102 (trouble communicating) message. I got the message using 2 different tapes. The message comes up at different times while backing up, not at the same file or the same number of bytes. I also tried turning the hardware compression off. The drive is brand new as is the computer (Stratus). RDU.RPX in use is v3.5. I would appreciate it if you could point me in the right direction. Thank you, John Operating System: - Windows 2000 Advanced Server The drive (from device properties in Retrospect: - Sony DAT DDS-DC - Vendor: SONY - Product: SDT-10000 - Revision: 02n5 - Location: Bus 4, ID 4 Note here that when I look at the drive properties in the Windows 2000 Device Manager, I see Bus 0, ID 4, LUN 0. Error Message from the Retrospect log: - 11/13/2002 8:43:50 AM: Copying OEM (C:) Trouble writing: "1-Test Backup Set A" (396132352), error -102 (trouble communicating) - 11/19/2002 1:00:37 PM: Copying OEM (C:) Trouble writing: "1-Test Backup Set A" (446103552), error -102 (trouble communicating) - 12/04/2002 12:57:55 PM: Copying OEM (C:) Trouble writing: "1-Test Backup Set A" (115507200), error -102 (trouble communicating) - 12/04/2002 1:04:10 PM: Copying OEM (C:) Trouble writing: "1-Test Backup Set A" (588021760), error -102 (trouble communicating) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyJ Posted December 4, 2002 Report Share Posted December 4, 2002 In reply to: I checked all cables and terminators for this drive and I am still getting the Error -102 (trouble communicating) message. How did you check the cable and termination? Did you swap them out with another cable and teminator? Update/reinstall the SCSI card drivers and firmware. Try a different card if possible. Make sure ASPI is installed. Run the ASPI check utility (ASPICHK.exe located in the Retrospect folder under Program Files:Dantz:Retrosepct). If it reports ASPI is not fully installed on your computer, or if the versions listed are not all at 4.60, run the ASPI installer (ASPIINST.exe, also in the Retrospect folder). For more information about ASPI, see “ASPI Explained” in the Retrospect User's Guide. In reply to: The drive is brand new as is the computer (Stratus) Could still be a faulty drive or bad SCSI connection, among other things. Have you tried the drive on a different computer with a different SCSI card? If not, try this if possible. If the problem follows the tape drive, then most likely you've got a problem with the drive, cable or termination (assuming you are using the same cable and terminator). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FuzzyJohn Posted December 11, 2002 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2002 The system manufacturer (Stratus) checked the cables and terminations. They reported everything OK. I ran Microsoft Backup in Windows 2000 Advanced Server repeatedly on all drives with verify turned on and there were no problems. If Microsoft Backup can keep communications with the drive during full system backups, why does Retrospect lose communications? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FuzzyJohn Posted December 14, 2002 Author Report Share Posted December 14, 2002 The system manufacturer also confirmed that the Sony tape drive is installed on Bus 0, ID 4 not on Bus 4, ID 4 as reported by Retrospect Drive Properties. I would appreciate a solution to this problem, as this system is already in production, in a critical application, and the costly Retrospect software that we purchased (Single Server + Open File Backup + Disaster Recovery) does not do anything to protect this system. Thank you, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyJ Posted December 17, 2002 Report Share Posted December 17, 2002 Error 102 trouble communicating This error occurs when the computers CPU loses contact with the backup device. The most common cause is improper SCSI termination. But it can also be caused by other issues on the bus. It is necessary to go through the SCSI troubleshooting outline below. The first thing you want to try is a new tape. If the new tape works, then the tape you are seeing the error with is bad. If you see the error on all tapes, you can look into the following possibilities: 1) a dirty tape drive. Clean the drive with a cleaning cartridge. Most manufacturers recommend cleaning the unit once for every 8-10 hours of run time. Once a week is often enough for most people. 2) another device on your SCSI bus may be interfering with the tape drive's communication. Turn off your computer and the SCSI devices. Make sure your SCSI ID numbers don't conflict. Disconnect all SCSI devices except for the tape drive. 3) Was ASPI installed correctly? Run ASPICHK (in the Retrospect Program Files folder) to make sure ASPI is "green" and all components are at version 4.60. If not, try a reinstall (ASPIINST.exe). 4) Enable NT SCSI Passthrough to bypass ASPI: From the Retrospect Directory hit Ctrl-Alt-P-P. Under "Execution," check "Enable NT SCSI Passthrough." Click OK. Quit and relaunch. 5) Update the driver software for your SCSI card(s) at their manufacturers' websites. 6) the computer may be having a problem. Install Retrospect on another computer and try the tape drive there as the lone SCSI device. 7) the drive may be defective. If you have implemented all of the preceding steps and get failures on multiple tapes after changing cables, terminators and computers, then the drive, being the only factor that has not changed, is the culprit--send it back to your vendor for repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FuzzyJohn Posted December 17, 2002 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2002 Hi Amy, Doesn't the fact that I was able to use Windows Backup several times to do full backups of the machine (except for the open files) tell anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyJ Posted December 31, 2002 Report Share Posted December 31, 2002 Retrospect reads and writes data using various device transports, such as USB, IEEE 1394 or FireWire, ATAPI, and SCSI. Each device transport has its own requirements and limitations, but Retrospect can properly and completely back up data using any of these. Retrospect is not overly sensitive to errors on any transport; Retrospect simply sends commands and data to devices, following each transport's strict protocols. If unexpected errors are reported, Retrospect reports to the user. In a properly functioning system, all will be well. If, however, something is not operating properly (for example, a SCSI bus is not properly terminated or you are using old IEEE 1394 device drivers for a new 1394 device bridge), errors can be reported. The issue here is not one of sensitivity, but rather the nature of backup: if data is reported to not have been written or read properly, Retrospect must report it to the user, to avoid data loss. People from time to time contact Dantz to say that Retrospect does not work with a device, or that Retrospect reports an error, but that another backup application does not. There are many possible causes for this. First, and most frightening, it is possible that the other backup application is simply ignoring the error, and that your data is not actually being backed up properly. Second, there are many ways to access devices, including hundreds of commands and series of commands an application can use to send data for backup. Another backup application many issue commands to a backup device in a different order, or in fact use entirely different ways of writing. This does not make Retrospect's access methods incorrect, or inappropriate (nor the other application's for that matter). Dantz spends tremendous resources on testing and qualifying various backup devices with Retrospect; if we certify that a device is compatible with Retrospect, we have thoroughly tested the drive. This does not mean that in some configurations other factors will not be able to interfere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FuzzyJohn Posted January 14, 2003 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2003 Good to see Retrospect working once again. That said, I have to take a little time to wipe the egg off my face. The problem indeed turned out not to be Retrospect. Stratus did more in-depth investigating and they ended up changing some settings on the SCSI controller card for the tape drive. That done, everything worked like a charm. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyJ Posted January 14, 2003 Report Share Posted January 14, 2003 Hey John - Thank you for the update! Amy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhaidacher Posted January 21, 2003 Report Share Posted January 21, 2003 I have experienced this type of problem not only with SCSI devices. FireWire, ATAPI also experience the same problem. It must be something internal with the way Retrospect communicates or causes the OS to communicate with the device. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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