Chapter 1. introduction – IBM 3590 User Manual

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Chapter 1. Introduction

The IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape System 3590 provides high capacity,
performance, reliability, and a wide range of host connectivity. The IBM 3590
has the following functions:
v The 3590 creates tapes for archival files.
v The 3590 backs up and restores systems in case of system or disk storage

problems.

v The 3590 stores high-speed, high-capacity sequential application data sets.
v The 3590 stores temporary data sets.
v The 3590 satisfies off-site data storage for disaster recovery.
v The 3590 provides data interchange with other systems that use 3590

subsystems.

v The 3590 meets data acquisition needs.

The IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape System 3590 comes in different models
and offers several attachment options to meet your needs. Each drive can
have an automatic cartridge facility (ACF) with a 10-cartridge magazine. The
drives have a small computer system interface (SCSI) attachment or Fibre
Channel Attachment. Only the 3590 Model E is attachable to Fibre Channel.
Each drive can connect to an IBM 3590 tape controller for Enterprise Systems
CONnection (ESCON) or FIbre CONnections (FICON) attachment of a 3590.
Large scale automation offerings, which include the IBM TotalStorage
Enterprise Automated Tape Library (3494) and StorageTek

™

Silo, support the

3590.

The 3590 Bxx tape drives read and write data on 128-track format on IBM
3590 High Performance Cartridge Tape. This read, and write function results
in a 10GB uncompressed data tape capacity. Model Exx tape drives read and
write data on the 256-track format on IBM High Performance Cartridge Tape.
This read, and write function results in a 20GB tape. The Extended High
Performance Cartridge Tape increases the IBM TotalStorage 3590 E Model
256-track serpentine format capacity to 40GB. It also increases the IBM
TotalStorage 3590 B Model 128-track serpentine format capacity to 20GB.

At 3 to 1 compression on the High Performance Cartridge Tape, the capacity
increases to 60GB on E models and 30GB on B models. The Extended High
Performance Cartridge Tape doubles the compressed capacities to 120GB on E
models and 60GB on B models. E models have a 14MB per second device data
rate, and B models have a 9MB per second transfer rate.

With data compression, the 3590 drives can more effectively utilize the full
capability of the Fibre Channel data rate. Data compression also enhances the

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