Format Tape Command Unavailable for Certain Tapes Using Ntbackup.exe

• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Server, Enterprise Edition version 4.0

SUMMARY

When you are using Windows NT Backup (Ntbackup.exe), the Format Tape command on the Operations menu may be unavailable for certain types of tapes.

MORE INFORMATION

The Ntbackup.exe program included with Windows NT can format only tapes in floppy disk controller-based tape drives that are DC2000 compatible. The driver for this type of tape device specifies whether the device supports the format command. Ntbackup.exe uses this information to determine whether the Format Tape command is available. Ntbackup.exe cannot format tapes in SCSI controller-based tape drives.

Note that the Format Tape command is unavailable for some tape drives that do support the Format Tape command. With these devices, the Format Tape command is unavailable because formatting the tape would lower the tape capacity. For example, some Travan tapes have a 800-megabyte (MB) capacity with factory formatting, but have only a 250-MB capacity if formatted using Ntbackup.exe.

Please consult the tape drive's manufacturer or documentation for information about how to format tapes if the Format Tape command is unavailable.

Additional query words: prodnt greyed grayed out

Keywords          : kbhw ntsetup ntbackup 
Version           : winnt:4.0
Platform          : winnt 
Issue type        : kbinfo 

Last Reviewed: January 22, 1999