Page 71 - UNI 101 Computer Science Handout.

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3.6 MAGNETIC TAPE

Magnetic tape is used by many companies for backups and archives in large computer systems. Like

other magnetic media, tape is nonvolatile, and the data can be stored indefinitely. Note that tape is a
sequential medium, which makes it impractical for random access tasks. Generally, full system backups

are made to tape and moved to offsite locations for long term storage. There are several basic tape

layouts, but all current formats are cartridge-based mechanisms. Regardless of type, the tape cartridge
is removable from the tape drive for offline storage. When the tape is in the tape drive, ready for

operation, it is said to be mounted. Tape cartridges have the major advantage of convenience. They are

easy to mount and dismount, and small and easy to store. Current tape cartridges can store as much as

1.6 TB of compressed data or 800 GB of uncompressed data. Cartridges with uncompressed capacities

as large as 4 TB are currently in development. There are two main categories of data cartridge formats
in use. The LTO (linear tape open) formats are representative of linear recording cartridges. An LTO

format data cartridge is shown in Figure below. The LTO format typically holds up to 820 meters of

Figure 10 Tape cartridge with Top Removed.

71 Academic Year 2025/2026