A virtual tape can be changed while Avanti is running after the guest has unloaded it. The unload closes Avanti's handle to the backing file. Renaming the file while it is still loaded is not a supported tape-change procedure. Avanti creates a new file at the configured path when the guest next accesses the device. To change the virtual tape Tape1.vtape, follow these steps:

1)Stop tape access.

a)Tru64 UNIX: The following are retained historical command examples that have not been revalidated across the supported Tru64 releases: issue mt unload or mt offline for the tape device. Verify the command accepted by the installed release before relying on this procedure.

b)VMS: Historical OpenVMS field guidance uses DISMOUNT for the tape device. This guest-to-SCSI unload behavior has not been revalidated for Avanti 5.1.0; confirm that Avanti has released the backing file before continuing.

2)From Windows, rename the file Tape1.vtape to a new name, such as AUG03_Backup.vtape.

3)The next time a tape operation takes place against the virtual tape device, the Tape1.vtape file will be recreated.