SCSI interface

[RonS]

I'm trying to put together the parts to read an Exabyte VXA-2 tape drive using a notebook computer. It can be done with a PCMCIA SCSI card, but that solution is very slow.

1. Does anyone know of an ExpressCard SCSI adapter?
2. Has anyone used a Firewire to SCSI cable?
3. Any other ideas?

Thanks!

 

[corkyg]

Express/54 or /34 is still on the drawing board. There are almost no useful Express devices out even though laptop OEMs are fielding them. In particular, broadband wireless connection cards.

But, Firewire to SCSI is doable. Firewire is actually a SCSI derivative created by Apple (who also created SCSI.) Firewire is basically the stripped out, standalone version of the stuff used to make SCSI II into SCSI III. Anyway, there are SCSI/Firewire converters. They are worth a shot.

SCSI

A totally different approach might be to attach the tape drive to a desktop and link the laptop to it via a network.

 

[RonS]

Thanks for the reply. I'm trying to track down a VXA-2 Firewire drive (can't find any in stock). I've received mixed messages from Exabyte whether or not the Firewire drive will accept the SCSI command set, which is important to me because I talk to the drive by sending my own SCSI commands using ASPI/IOCTL.

I was told that the Exabyte Firewire tape drive is an IDE drive internally, not SCSI. I guess I'll find out.

 

[TerryMathews]

There are also USB->SCSI bridges. Probably your best bet if you need to preserve the SCSI command set (IE you're using a program that talks to the drive directly instead of using the Windows device API)