> 	Then you wrote another tar archive to the tape, with out
> backing up over the second of the two file marks.  And again
> with the third..
> 
> 	So, your tape looks like this:
> 
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		file mark
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		file mark
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		file mark
....
> 	You should be writing these tapes in the following
> fashion:
> 
> 		tar cf /dev/nrst0 <files>
> 		mt bsf 1
> 		tar cf /dev/nrst0 <files>
> 		mt bsf 1
> 		tar cf /dev/nrst0 <files>
> 
> 	That way, the tape will look like:
> 
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		tar archive
> 		file mark
> 		file mark
> 
> 	Which is what you want it to look like..

That is indeed what the tape should look like, but you shouldn't
need the 'mt bsf 1' commands.
Closing the non-rewing tape device after a write should leave the tape
positioned BETWEEN the two tape marks.

On read the the same should happen (maybe requiring that the 'EOF' be
read), except that the end of tape (two adjacent file marks) is 'sticky.

I've copied QIC150 tapes using a loop of dd commands - you have to stop
when you get a zero sized file - or else you get an infinite number of
them.

Looks like a couple of bugs to me.

	David

-- 
David Laight: david@l8s.co.uk