Overview

This page is intended to help standardize ways of using SDLT Drive utilities when gathering drive log data for Engineering Review. It provides information about the available utililities and about their test suites. This should help minimize return visits for repeated log capture attempts.

 

It discusses two tools: the XTalk Management Console utility and the Highroad utility.

 

---

Using xTalk to Gather SDLT Drive Logs for Escalation

This section describes how FEs and/or TPMs can use xTalk to gather a drive log from the Quantum SDLT600/SDLT-S4 family of drives.

 

These steps are not intended to replace the User's Guide, but they should help you gather more consistent data for Engineering escalations. Although this section describes the WIndows port of xTalk, the concepts in it apply in the Linux, Solaris, and Windows environements.

 

Sometimes, the Drive Engineering Team will request a full set of diagnostics logs from an SDLT600/S4 tape drive. There are several ways to capture a drive log. However, they provide different amounts of details and verbiage. The steps shown below can help you use xTalk to standardize the collected data FA Data files. 

 

What's Needed

 

You will need the xTalk Utility module, installed on a host server that has connectivity to the tape drive(s) for which you are gathering data.

 

Note: Halt all backup applications before using XTalk, to avoid device contention.

 

Where to Get xTalk

 

You can download xTalk from http://www.quantum.com/ServiceandSupport/SoftwareandDocumentationDownloads/Sage/Index.aspx

 

Steps For Gathering FA Data Files

 

Please see the "FA Data Files" chapter in the xTalk User's Guide for the latest steps for gathering the FA Data files. Escalate the drive logs per the Escalation process to the the appropriate Drive Engineering Team aliases.

 

Download the xTalk User's Guide For Windows

 

---

Using the HighRoad Utility to Capture SDLT Drive Logs for Escalation

Highroad is a GUI/CLI utility that lets you scan for devices, select them, and use commands to gather specific outputs. This is useful when the Drive Engineering Team asks you to gather FA drive log data.

 

Note: Do not distribute Highroad to customers unless directed to do so by the Drive Engineering Team.

What's Needed

Software

 

You will need the following files:

 

• The Highroad Utility, available from Drive Engineering. It must be installed on a host server that has connectivity to the drives being checked.  You can request it through the typical escalation paths, RTS, and/or QIT review.
• Log parsing tools, which you should request at the same time as you request Highroads. These let you import output from Highroad into an Excel pivot table to provide managed views of drive events, bugchecks, and other valuable data trends. 

The log parsing tools include:

 

• sdltlogs.exe - an executable file that parses the Highroad output files
• run_sdltlogs.bat - a batch file that creates an Excel delimited file from the output of sdltlogs.exe
• sdlt_display.xls - an Excel template used to parse the data into categories of pre-defined pivot table views

Documentation

 

Useful documentation for using Highroads and the log parsing tools includes:

 

• Collecting DLT-SDLT Drive Logs Using Highroad v4.0 [hyperlink needed] - instructions for using Highroads to collect drive logs
• Capturing Drive Logs - SDLT - instructions on how to capture SDLT logs
• SDLT Event Log Troubleshooting Guide 

Note: Before following the steps below, It is recommended that you stop I/O activity to the target drive.

 

1. Click the Write Dump button. You'll see a screen that lets you select a device and options for log capture.
2. Select the device.
3. Select Bugcheck (Full Dump).
4. Navigate to the destination folder and enter a filename. Be sure to use intuitive naming conventions that identify the drive by SN and date/time when choosing filenames and saving the files.
5. Click Start.
6. Repeat for each drive

 

---

What's Next...

rasDumpOutput (fsc) > 

 

Additional Resources