🚀 go-pugleaf

Ive managed to get my linux box to detect the just installed HP DDS-2 tape
drive.
It comes up in the kernel like this.

  Vendor: HP        Model: HP35470A          Rev: 1009
  Type:   Sequential-Access                  ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Detected scsi tape st0 at scsi0, channel 0, id 0, lun 0

No problem. Now.

I look in /dev and I indeed have /dev/tape which is pointing to /dev/st0 no
worries. normal.

Now, where to from here?

If I do an "mt status" I get this. With or without a tape in the drive.

SCSI 2 tape drive:
File number=-1, block number=-1, partition=0.
Tape block size 0 bytes. Density code 0x0 (default).
Soft error count since last status=0
General status bits on (10000):
 IM_REP_EN

NO other MT commands work? I cant rewind it, I cant do anything with it? The
only other MT command I have managed to get to work is "MT LOAD" which
ejects a tape if there is a tape in the drive.

My question is. Where do I go from here? How can I erase this tape? How can
I do a simple backup eg "tar cvf /etc /dev/st0" or something "shrug"

Any help greatly appreciated.

P.S what tape backup software would you reccommend? I've looked at Arkeia,
and it looks pretty good, has windows client too, so I can admin it from
winblows box...

Cheers, James