The first form of this command is used to give the backup
server a hint, which cartridge number is currently placed inside
the streamer. If the tape has a valid afbackup label, then it
is not necessary to tell the server, what tape is in the drive,
cause it will try to read and evaluate it. If the tape is not
labeled (e.g. if it has not been used before), the server has
no chance to find out the number and must maintain it's own
information about it. The server will automatically label new
tapes, if they don't already have a valid label, the next time,
a write operation is attempted on the tape. By issuing cartis
after inserting an unlabeled tape you tell the server, what
tape it should become. If you are not initially starting with
cartridge number 1 and an unlabeled tape, you have to enter
this command at least one time.
The second form instructs the server to write the next backup
data stream to cartridge number
<ins-cart>,
starting at file number
<ins-file>.
This is useful, if for some reason you want
to take out the cartridge which is currently inside the drive and
continue on a different tape or at the beginning of the tape
you have put in instead. Note, that it usually causes problems,
if you try to write at a tape position, that is not at the end
of the last file, that has been written to tape. So set the
<ins-file>
number only to a value different from 1, if you
really know, that this is the end of the used tape area. In
other words, if n files are on tape, set
<ins-file>
to n+1. So
if you don't know n, you're better off starting to write at the
beginning of a new tape entering the appropriate cartis-command.
To find out, what the server is thinking, which cartridge is
currently inside the drive, you can give the command
afclient -q
on any client. If the value, that
is printed out, does not reflect the reality, you have to inform
the backup server about this fact via this command entering both
forms of this command. The first form with the real cartridge
number and the second one with the next cartridge number and a 1
as file number. Then the next backup goes to the next cartridge.
You may also set the next backup writing position to the current
file number on the correct cartridge. To find out, where the
server side intents to write the next backup, enter the command
afclient -Q
on any client.
It makes sense to check the consistency from time to time, if
the backup server has the right idea of the current cartridge.
-S <cartset>
The cartridge set to use, where
<cartset>
is the
number of a valid cartridge set on the server
side. Default is 1