The helical scan technology offers a higher data storage density than linear tape but typically stores less overall data than linear tapes To achieve this, two tape reels with quarter-inch-wide tape media are used in the same cartridge. Today, there are two primary tape technologies used in the market: linear tape (that is used by LTO) and helical scan.Ī helical system writes data in diagonal strips along the tape. However, today’s technologies-especially LTO’s advanced linear tape technology-offer similar drive performance to HDDs and SSDs. Naturally, this mechanism results in slower read/write speeds than HDDs or SSDs. This sequential storage method, however, means the system must start at the beginning of the tape and roll through it to read specific data or write new data. An Ultrium drive can write data to a cartridge in its own generation and from one prior generation (in the prior generation’s format.)Īs a storage tape, an LTO tape reads and writes data in a sequential manner-one file after another-as opposed to hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs) that write and read data in a non-sequential way by using rotating disks.Up to and including LTO-7, a Ultrium drive can read data from a cartridge in the two prior generations (i.e., LTO-7 drives can read LTO-6 and LTO-5, but not LTO-4).Unlike other storage tape technologies, a Ultrium cartridge can only be used by a particular generation of LTO drive (with the exception of Type M or M8, as discussed above,) with the following rules: Once this cartridge is initialized as Type M, it may not be changed back into a standard LTO-7 cartridge. Note: “Type M (M8)” refers to how some LTO-8 drives may write previously unused LTO-7 tapes with an increased, uncompressed capacity of 9 TB. Time needed to write a full tape at maximum speed (hh:mm) You can see the details and differences between these different LTO formats in the table below: Format Different generations of LTO tapesĪs of 2021, there are nine generations of LTO Ultrium tapes (LTO-1 to LTO-9) commercially available in the market, and five more (LTO-10 to LTO-14) are planned. In 2000, the first iteration of Ultrium was introduced with a 100 GB native capacity, although initially, it was going to be available with 10 GB, 30 GB, and 50 GB cartridges too, but scrapped. LTO Ultrium has grown to be a very popular data storage tape format. However, only Ultrium was ever produced for the mass markets. The plan was to optimize Ultrium for capacity and Accelis for speed and low latency. The LTO Consortium was formed by IBM, HP, and Seagate to add more competition to this market, and the initial plan was to launch to LTO formats: Ultrium, planned as a single-reel, half-inch tape and Accelis with 8mm tape on dual reels. Both formats were tightly controlled by their owners, so there was practically no competition, driving their prices high. By then, Quantum’s Digital Linear Tape (DLT) and Sony’s Advanced Intelligent Tape (AIT) were the two leading options for high-capacity data tape storage for PC servers and enterprise-grade UNIV systems. The medium continued to evolve until the late 1990s. The magnetic data tape storage technology has actually been around since the 1950s, with the half-inch magnetic tape, IBM 7 track, and later IBM 9 track being the pioneering data tape format back then. LTO is designed as an open standard, and the standard form-factor of the LTO technology is called Ultrium (hence, LTO Ultrium.) LTO stands for Linear Tape-Open, and is a format (or technology) of magnetic data tape storage developed in the late 1990s by IBM, HP, and Seagate (that formed the LTO Consortium. Without further ado, let us begin with the basics: what is LTO? What is LTO?
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