Tape drives have long been in use in a variety of forms. It is an electromechanical piece of equipment that has the capability to read and write to a tape cartridge. It is able to exchange data with the rest of the computer.

Tape drives use either linear tape head technology or helical scan technology. The newest drives use VXA packet technology, which is the first technology to offer a zero-error rate.

The tape drive you choose will depend largely on the type of data you have to store, drive size, longevity, drive performance, drive speed, and the size of your budget.

Let's have a look at the various drive technologies available to you. We'll start with the newest one.

• VXA Packet Technology - this is the newest technology and it uses digital packets, making it extremely fast. Most importantly it has a zero-error rate and large volume capacity.
• DDS Digital Data Storage - uses helical head technology and records computer data to 4mm DAT cartridges. The maximum storage capability is 72 GB.
• AIT Advanced Intelligent Tape - uses helical head technology and records computer data to 8mm tape cartridges. It can support large volumes of data up to 400 GB with a transfer rate of 48 Mbps.
• LTO Linear Tape Open - this is standard linear tape which has evolved over the years and currently is able to support large volumes of data up to 400 GB at a transfer rate of 80 Mbps or 160 Mbps if the data is compressed.
• DLT Digital Linear Tape - uses linear head technology. It records 128 or 1280 data tracks and can hold 160 GB with a 60 Mbps transfer rate. Use a SuperDLT and you can store 800 GB with the same transfer rate.

With the exception of the VXA packet technology, which is the best on the market, the biggest disadvantage of other tape drives is that the data is sequential making all of the data reliant on the previous block of data and thus increasing the risk of errors and the tape being of no value.

That being said, tape backups are still the best choice for storing massive amounts of data; data that would not fit on a CD or DVD. Using a VXA tape drive allows you to use multiple tapes and not have to know which tape was first or second, and they don't need to be restored in a same order that they were written. Also, the same file or program can be backed up on several different tapes and still be assembled using the drive's memory buffer.

Watch the VXA Technology virtual tour.