When people hear the word tape backup, many assume it’s outdated technology. But the reality is, if you want cost-effective offline storage, LTO tape drives remain one of the most reliable and affordable options.
However, there’s a catch that anyone using tape for long-term retention should be aware of: backward compatibility is changing.
The Evolution of LTO Compatibility
Historically, LTO tape drives offered solid backwards support:
-
Up to LTO-7, drives could read and write one generation back and read two generations back.
-
Example: An LTO-7 drive could read/write LTO-6 and read LTO-5.
-
But starting with LTO-8 and beyond, things changed:
-
LTO-8 drives can only read/write LTO-7 tapes. They cannot read LTO-6.
-
LTO-9 drives can only read/write LTO-8 tapes. They cannot read LTO-7.
This shift means you can no longer rely on future generations to reach as far back into your tape archive.
Why This Matters
If you’re storing large volumes of legacy data on older tapes, you may eventually need to access it—often for legal, compliance, or forensic reasons. Nothing’s worse than realizing too late that your shiny new LTO-9 drive won’t read that critical LTO-7 tape.
At that point, you’re left scrambling to:
-
Find an older drive (often secondhand on sites like eBay), or
-
Migrate all older tapes to the latest generation—a process that can be costly, time-consuming, and error-prone.
Best Practices
To avoid surprises:
-
Keep older tape drives on hand if you plan to retain older media.
-
Consider a migration strategy for legacy tapes if you want to consolidate to newer media.
-
Test your restores periodically to ensure the data you’ve archived remains accessible.
Final Thoughts
Tape may not be glamorous, but it still plays a vital role in cost-effective, secure, offline backup strategies. Just remember: as LTO evolves, backwards compatibility isn’t what it used to be.
Plan, keep the proper hardware around, and you’ll save yourself headaches down the road.