If you are going to need to mount and overwrite the pool, it may be easier to do it using an IBM linux on z system. Linxu tape handling has a lot less requirements, and you can easily pull garbage data from /dev/urandom. It also looks like Linux has support for autoloading volumes on ts7700 devices (https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/linux-on-systems?topic=z-tape390-display). Setting up a Python script to cycle through all of the free tape and fill them with random data would likely be easier than building a temporary z/OS system. Just make sure to isolate this tape pool so you don't accidentally shred other tapes.
The cluster decomposition approach originally came from someone who asked how to securely erase a ts7720 unit they were locked out of without destroying it. - Enzo Damato ________________________________________ From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List <[email protected]> on behalf of Tom Longfellow <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 11:29 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: TS7700 abandoned volumes questions Yes, I agree that the only safe way out is to leave it to the professionals that created the problem. The first hurdle would be having a relationship with them that allows me to make requests or demands. Unless it is a broken situation that I can report to support as a 'problem' I have no alternatives. My disagreement in their great and holy design does not rise to the point of getting them to fix what is not deemed as being wrong. I would still be interested to know their response to the security exposure to data that cannot be wiped from the system. An army of Security Auditors could descend upon them any day. Because 'if it exists, it can be hacked' is their world view. While I would like to make it no longer exist, I am not given that option with the current design. The take it down, tear it apart, reformat it and put it all back together is the most daring approach I have ever seen. Very bold and high risk. I have spent my career avoiding breadboards, soldering irons and screwdrivers for very good reasons. The approval for me to do that layer of tinkering to get rid of annoying zombie abandoned tapes will never happen. Plus, the skills to do that are not available. I do not hate these zombie volumes enough to nuke the village in order to save it. But it is sorta fun to think about. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
