3592 Model J tape drives emulate already-supported tape devices. To use these drives in a nonlibrary environment, you must manage mixed media and resolve drive allocation ambiguities between 3592 Model J drives and the actual models of drives that are being emulated. This is because the emulated device type is recorded in the data set records of user catalogs. You must manage media and device allocation according to your installation's storage management policies. You must segregate real and emulated device types.

Before using the new 3592 media (MEDIA6, MEDIA7, or MEDIA8) in the stand-alone environment, ensure that all 3592 devices within the same esoteric are at the same 3592 microcode support level to ensure that a 3592 device is allocated that supports the new media types.

Recommendation: Use a manual tape library, DFSMSrmm, third-party tape management software, or write your own applications when using 3592 Model J tape drives in a stand-alone environment.