Mounting tape media

This topic describes how to mount tape media for the IBM Spectrum® Archive.

Before you begin

Attention: A mount operation fails if a tape medium is not in the LTFS format or has consistency errors. To format a medium or to check for consistency errors, refer to the topics Formatting media using the mkltfs command and Checking media using the ltfsck command in the Related information section.

About this task

Complete the following steps to mount a tape medium and verify that it is successfully mounted:

Note: The LTFS format version is continuously updated. Refer to the topic LTFS tape format compatibility in the Related information section for compatibility information.

Procedure

Create a mount point directory (if one does not already exist) by typing the following at the command prompt:
For Linux®:
```
# mkdir /mnt/ltfs
```
For macOS :
```
# mkdir -p /Users/[your_id_name]/mnt/ltfs
```

List available drives.


$ ltfs -o device_list
5ae8 LTFS14000I LTFS starting, LTFS version 2.4.3.0, log level 2.
...
5ae8 LTFS17089I Distribution: Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server release 7.6 (Maipo).
5ae8 LTFS17085I Plugin: Loading "sg" tape backend.
Tape Device list:.
Device Name = /dev/sg91 (9.0.20.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1168001522, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].
Device Name = /dev/sg83 (8.0.20.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1168001522, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].
Device Name = /dev/sg71 (1.0.20.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1168001522, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].
Device Name = /dev/sg66 (9.0.19.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1068003675, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].
Device Name = /dev/sg59 (8.0.19.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1068003675, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].
Device Name = /dev/sg35 (1.0.19.0), Vendor ID = IBM  , Product ID = ULT3580-TD5  , Serial Number = 1068003675, Product Name =[ULT3580-TD5].

Use the ltfs command to mount the tape medium:
For Linux:
```
# ltfs -o devname=/dev/sg10 /mnt/ltfs
```
For macOS :
```
# ltfs -o devname=0 /Users/[your_id_name]/mnt/ltfs
```
Refer to the topic Mounting media using the ltfs command in the Related information section to learn more about ltfs command syntax and options.
Use the mount command to verify whether the medium is successfully mounted. If a message similar to the following displays, the mount request has successfully completed:
```
:
ltfs on [your_mount_point] type fuse (rw,nosuid,default_permission)
:
```

Results

After the medium is mounted, it can be accessed as described in the topic Accessing tape media in the Related information section.

Note for macOS users: An icon for the mounted folder can be displayed on the desktop automatically by changing the following Finder preferences:

From the menu bar at the top of the screen, select Finder > Preferences. The Finder Preferences window displays.
Click General to open the General tab.
Click the Connected servers checkbox in order to show the mounted folder automatically on the desktop.
Close the Finder Preferences window.

Attention: A mounted tape must be unmounted first before it can be ejected from the tape drive. Pressing the Unload button on the front panel of drive does not eject a mounted tape. Refer to the topic Unmounting tape media in the Related information section.