Data cartridges

The different generations of IBM® Ultrium™ data cartridges can be identified by color.

Table 1. Cartridge types and colors
Type	Color
Ultrium 9	Teal
Ultrium 9 WORM	Teal and Silver gray
Ultrium 8	Burgundy
Ultrium 8 WORM	Silvery gray
Ultrium M8	Purple
Ultrium 7	Purple
Ultrium 7 WORM	Purple and Silvery gray
Ultrium 6	Black
Ultrium 6 WORM	Black and Silvery gray
Ultrium 5	Burgundy
Ultrium 5 WORM	Burgundy and Silvery gray
Ultrium 4	Green
Ultrium 4 WORM	Green and Silvery gray
Ultrium 3	Slate Blue
Ultrium 3 WORM	Slate Blue and Silvery gray
Ultrium 2	Purple
Ultrium 1	Black

All generations contain 1/2-inch, dual-coat, magnetic tape.

You can order tape cartridges with the bar code labels included, or you can order custom labels. To obtain tape cartridges and bar code labels, see Ordering media supplies.

When tape is processed in the cartridges, Ultrium tape drives use a linear, serpentine recording format. The native data capacity and recording format of Ultrium data cartridges is as follows:

Table 2. Cartridge data capacity and recording formats
Cartridge data capacity and recording formats
Type	Native Data Capacity	Recording Format
Ultrium 9	18 TB (45 TB at 2.5:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 8960 tracks, 32 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 8	12 TB (30 TB at 2.5:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 6656 tracks, 32 tracks at a time.
Ultrium M8	9 TB (22.5 TB at 2.5:1 compression)¹	Reads and writes data on 3584 tracks, 32 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 7	6 TB (15 TB at 2.5:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 3584 tracks, 32 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 6	2.5 TB (6.25 TB at 2.5:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 2176 tracks, 16 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 5	1.5 TB (3 TB at 2:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 1280 tracks, 16 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 4	800 GB (1.6 TB at 2:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 896 tracks, 16 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 3	400® GB (800 GB at 2:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 704 tracks, 16 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 2	200 GB (400 GB at 2:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 512 tracks, 8 tracks at a time.
Ultrium 1	100 GB (200 GB at 2:1 compression)	Reads and writes data on 384 tracks, 8 tracks at a time.
¹Library Firmware must be at 0080 or greater to support the LTO™ M8 media feature. Drive firmware must be at HB82 or greater to support the LTO M8 media feature. Ensure that any IBM device drivers are at the minimum level that is required to support the library.

The first set of tracks is written from near the beginning of the tape almost to the end of the tape. The head then repositions to the next set of tracks for the return pass. This process continues until all tracks are written and the cartridge is full, or until all data is written.

The cartridge door (2 in Figure 1) protects the tape from contamination when the cartridge is out of the drive. The tape is attached to a leader pin (3 in Figure 1) behind the door. When the cartridge is inserted into the drive, a threading mechanism pulls the pin (and tape) out of the cartridge, across the drive head, and onto a non-removable take-up reel. The head can then read or write data from or to the tape.

The write-protect switch (4 in Figure 1 prevents data from being written to the tape cartridge. For more information, see Write-Protect switch.

The label area (5 in Figure 1) provides a location to place a label. For more information, see Bar code labels.

The insertion guide (6 in Figure 1) is a large, notched area that prevents the cartridge from being inserted incorrectly.

Table 3. Nominal cartridge life: Load/unload cycles
Type	Load/Unload Cycles
Ultrium 9	100,000 (100k)
Ultrium 8	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium M8	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 7	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 6	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 5	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 4	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 3	20,000 (20k)
Ultrium 2	10,000 (10k)
Ultrium 1	5000 (5k)