Chapter 5: Performing Library OperationsTaking a Tape Drive Online or OfflineQuantum Scalar i40 and Scalar i80 User’s Guide 137Taking a Tape Drive Online or OfflineThere are two tape drive modes: online and offline.• Online — Tape drive is available for use. This is the normal operatingmode for the tape drive.• Offline — Tape drive is offline to the host application and is notavailable for cartridge load and unload (move) operations initiatedby the host application, but it remains available for Web client oroperator panel initiated move commands.Note: If a cartridge is already in the tape drive when you take thetape drive offline, then the host can still read and writedata on the tape.Some operations require that the tape drive be offline. You can take atape drive offline rather than the entire library or partition so as tominimize disruption of library operations.This topic focuses on using the library user interface, not the hostapplication, to change the tape drive mode. Using the library to changetape drive mode may affect the host application. See your hostapplication documentation for more information.Details on changing the tape drive mode include:• The online/offline state follows the tape drive slot, not the particulartape drive (if the tape drive were to be moved to a different slot inthe library).• You can select only tape drives in partitions to which you have beengiven access.• If you change the mode of a control path tape drive to offline, acaution dialog appears asking you to confirm the mode change. Forinformation on control path tape drives, see Configuring ControlPaths on page 67.You can change the tape drive mode from both the operator panel andthe Web client.
