[Info-vax] lower-cost bulk eraser for high-coercivity tape media (DAT, DLT, Ultrium etc)?

[Bill Gunshannon]

On 02/16/2018 02:37 PM, Rod Regier wrote:
> Any suggestions for a lower-cost bulk eraser for high-coercivity tape media
> such as DAT, DLT, Ultrium, etc? (Media that has been used on OpenVMS nodes).
> 
> This would for security erase and discard, so it doesn't matter that it could erase formatting tracks.
> 
> The lowest cost suitable product I could find is the Garner HD-2.
> http://www.garnerproducts.com/hd-2-degausser
> 
> Price on that from BHPhoto is $US695
> https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/747408-REG/Garner_3FW_HD2_3_Year_Extended_Warranty_for.html
> 
> (FYI, there are similar products selling for $US5000 or more too :-(
> 
> Apparently it uses a capacitive discharge method to operate the coils so it's not just a big electromagnet
> 


I use a cheap Radio Shack tape eraser for clearing old disks
for reformatting.  I would not do this for security reasons.
I would run them thru a shredder.  I would recommend pulling
the tape out of the cartridge and running it thru a shredder.

(Anecdotal hint:  Disk format programs like GDISK from Ghost
used to have a mode that supposedly met DOD requirements for
clearing tapes.  They erased and wrote over the entire disk
some ridiculous number of times.  There's a reason they no
longer do it.  No amount of erasing or re-writing can clean
a magnetic device.  Well, except maybe for the practice of
putting them on the deck of a ship going thru the degausser
at the Navy Shipyard in DC.)


bill