Brand new LTO tapes are provided in an unformatted state. Due to this, myLTO will be unable to detect when the tape has been inserted into your deck. However, we have made the process of formatting an inserted tape so that it can be detected extremely easy.

First, simply insert your tape into your deck.

Next, select your deck from the drives list on the left hand side to pull up the Tape and Deck Options.

From this window, select the button next to the tape outline marked Check for Tape. Wait for a few seconds and a pop-up will appear underneath this button that will say New tape? Click here to format.

Selecting this text will have a pop-up appear asking you if you would like to format your tape. Selecting to format your tape will bring up the following screen...

The first option Tape Label allows you to set a custom name for your tape to easily identify it in the future. Tape Labels cannot contain any special characters (e.g. ~, #, $, \, /, *, etc).

The next option, Barcode, allows you to set your tape’s barcode to a custom 6 character combination. This code must only contain numbers and capital letters and can only be set when formatting the tape.

The final option, Use Compression, allows you to define if your files should be compressed on entry. For best performance in archiving video files, leave this option unchecked. Compressed mode will impede write speeds and will not increase tape capacity unless the files you’re backing up are compressible (e.g. text files).

After selecting Format your tape will now be detected by myLTO and you can begin using it!

If this option is not working with your new tape, mount your tape using a Force Mount (directions here) and then select Format from the Tape Controls.