StorageTek Tape Formats
Tape Data Recovery - StorageTek Tape Formats
StorageTek tape formats refer to a series of magnetic tape data storage formats introduced by Storage Technology Corporation. StorageTek formats were designed for use in large computer systems.
The tape is wound onto a single hub and presents one end for the tape drive to engage and thread into the tape drive for reading or writing. Different types of StorageTek media have different design for their loading mechanism. There is a switch that can be set to permit or forbid writing of data to the tape.
The rectangular StorageTek cartridge was comparatively smaller and could be easily handled than the previously common 7-track and 9-track round tape reels. Most of the modern StorageTek tape cartridges are made in the 3480 format.They were suitable for use in automated tape libraries.
StorageTek 9840, 9940 and T10000 drives featured serpentine recording mode. When the tape reached the end, the drive reversed the direction of tape motion and moved the read/write heads slightly vertically across the tape, and continued the read/write process until it reached the beginning of the tape.
StorageTek SD3 was different in that it used helical scan mode. The SD3 drives were based upon a modified video recording device. In this, when the tape advanced, data was written/read by a cylindrical head rotating at high speed and inclined at a small angle to the direction of tape motion. This method resulted in a series of short data tracks very closely spaced together.
The most recent StorageTek format is the T10000. It holds 500 GB (native) memory and can transfer data at 120 MB/s.
