|
|
What is LTO?
maxellLinear Tape-Open (LTO) is an open-format tape storage technology developed by Hewlett-Packard (HP), International Business Machines (IBM), and Certance. The term "open-format" means that users have access to multiple sources of storage media products that will be compatible. The high-capacity implementation of LTO technology is known as the LTO Ultrium format, or simply LTO Ultrium.
The LTO Ultrium technology has evolved through several generations.The latest of these is Generation 3, which became available in late 2004 and provides data storage capacity of up to 800 gigabytes (GB) and a maximum transfer rate of 80 to 160 megabytes per second (MB/s). Generations 4, 5, and 6 are currently under development. Generation 4 is planned to provide a maximum storage capacity of 1.6 terabytes (TB) and a transfer rate of up to 240 MB/s. Generation 5 is expected to have a maximum storage capacity of 3.2 TB and a transfer rate of up to 360 MB/s. Generation 6 is expected to have a maximum storage capacity of 6.4 TB and a transfer rate of up to 540 MB/s. (All of these capacity and transfer speed figures are based on 2:1 data compression.)
LTO was developed in two different formats - one for fast data access and another for greater storage capacity. The Accelis format uses 8mm-wide tape on a two-reel cartridge that loads at the mid-point of the tape to provide fast data access, specifically for read-intensive applications, such as online searches and retrieval functions. The Ultrium format uses a single reel of half-inch wide tape to maximize storage capacity, specifically for write-intensive applications, such as archival and backup functions.
Advancements in LTO technology have historically involved several factors, including the materials from which the tape is manufactured, the digital encoding and compression methods used, the physical speed with which the tape moves through the drive, the length of the tape in each cartridge, and the physical density of data bits on the tape.
 Maxell LTO Ultrium 2 200GB
Other Alternatives
Yes, overall ther are two alternative tape storage standards to LTO include DLT/SDLT and AIT.
DLT (Digital Linear Tape) is a magnetic tape format developed by DEC (now Hewlett-Packard). DLT tapes are 1/2 inch wide and are packaged in study plastic containers. DLT tapes store between 10GB and 40GB of uncompressed data. A SuperDLT(SDLT) II tape can store up to 300GB of uncompressed data and can transfer as much as 36MB per second.
 Fujifilm DLT IV
AIT (Advanced Intelligent Tape) is a magnetic tape format developed by Sony. AIT tapes contain non-volatile memory called Memory-in-Cassette (MIC). This storage space contains data about the tape which can be read quickly by a tape drive, without having to read data from the slower magnetic media.
 Sony Ait-2 SDX2-50C 130GB
Capacity Transfer Rate
LTO:
| Generation | Capacity | Transfer rate |
|---|
|
| LTO-3 (current) | 400GB | 80MB/s |
| LTO-4 | 800GB | 120MB/s |
| LTO-5 | 1.6TB | 180MB/s |
| LTO-6 | 3.2TB | 270MB/s |
SDLT:
| Generation | Capacity | Transfer rate |
|---|
|
| SDLT600 (current) | 300 GB | 36 MB/s |
| SDLT-5 | 1.5-1.75 TB | 100-125 MB/s |
| SDLT-6 | 3-3.5 TB | 200 – 250 MB/s |
| SDLT-7 | 6-7 TB | 400-500 MB/s |
SAIT:
| Generation | Capacity | Transfer rate |
|---|
|
| SAIT-1 (current) | 500 GB | 30 MB/s |
| SAIT-2 (released soon) | 1 TB | 60 MB/s |
| SAIT-3 (later this decade) | 2 TB | 120 MB/s |
| SAIT-4 (ca. 2010) | 4 TB | 240 MB/s |
|
