IBM® TS2900 Tape Autoloader is a low-entry tape storage solution that is designed to address capacity, data protection, reliability, availability, and affordability. With low profile IBM Ultrium® Linear Tape-Open (LTO) 8, 7, and 6 Half-High tape drives, and high-density storage capacity, the TS2900 is ideally suited for backup and archival operations.

This IBM® Redbooks® Product Guide describes the IBM TS2900 Tape Autoloader, which is designed for entry-level automation in small-to-medium business environments. With a low-profile, high-density storage capacity, the TS2900 is ideally suited for backup and archival operations. The TS2900 is available with IBM Linear Tape-Open (LTO) Ultrium 8, 7, and 6 Half-High SAS tape technology for a high-capacity, entry-priced tape storage solution.

The TS2900 Tape Autoloader is shown in Figure 1.


Figure 1. TS2900 Tape Autoloader

The TS2900 is equipped with standard features that are designed to provide ease-of-use and secured data backup. Web-based remote management, a bar code reader, and a removable tape magazine help provide ease of use. The TS2900 can be used in a rack system or on a desktop that is next to a server in an office. These types of features help reduce the requirements of IT personnel staff, and also help centralize backup in the data center. The TS2900 also supports the encryption of sensitive user data in combination with LTO Ultrium 8, 7, or 6 Half-High tape technology from IBM. With 6 Gbps SAS attachment, the TS2900 will attach to select IBM Power Systems, IBM System p, and other Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems.


Did you know?

The TS2900 1U slim profile rack system environment is designed for automated, high-capacity tape storage and has the lowest entry price of any IBM tape automation that offers IBM Half-High tape technology. The IBM LTO Ultrium Half-High technology delivers reliable performance for small-to-medium open system environments. The single I/O station helps support continuous backup and archive library operations, and the removable magazine facilitates the offsite relocation of cartridges and archival data. The design of the remote library management through a standard web interface offers flexibility and greater administrative control of storage operations without the need to touch the unit.


Highlights

The TS2900 has a nine-data-slot cartridge capacity for a total storage capacity of up to 270 TB with 2:5:1 compression, and a single I/O station to provide undisturbed library operation when data cartridges are extracted or inserted. The library uses one IBM LTO Ultrium Half-High tape drive (in these TS2900 models, an LTO Ultrium 8 S8H, LTO Ultrium 7 S7H, or an LTO Ultrium 6 S6H). The TS2900 is shipped as a rack mount unit, with the option of a desktop conversion kit. As standard, the TS2900 includes a bar-code reader, which supports the operations in sequential or random access mode. Remote administration and management capabilities are possible through the web interface that is also included as standard.

LTO technology

With its use of an LTO Ultrium 8, 7, or 6 Half-High tape drive and a nine-tape cartridge capacity, the TS2900 can store up to 270 TB compressed (108 TB native). The IBM LTO Ultrium 8 tape drive supports up to 300 MBps, IBM LTO standards leadership continues with the LTO Ultrium 8 tape drive, which increases the storage capacity to 30.0 TB compressed (12.0 TB native) on LTO Ultrium 8 media.

The following backward compatibility (read and write) is available: