User's Guide

Commands: Mode Select (15h) Page 75
Parameter List Header Field Descriptions
The following table defines the fields in the Parameter List Header.
Field Name
Bytes Bits Description
Buffered
Mode
2 6-4 This field sets the buffering mode of the drive
The default mode is 001, buffered, The drive may report good
status on write commands as soon as all the data specified in the
write command has been transferred to the drive’s buffer.
Mode 000 is unbuffered, The drive will not report good status on
write commands until the data is actually written on the tape.
Block
Descriptor
Length
3 This field indicates the number of bytes of block descriptor
information that follow the MODE SELECT header.
The block descriptor length may be set to 00h, which indicates that
no block descriptor bytes are included in the parameter list. This
selection is valid and is not considered an error.
If the block descriptor length is 08h, eight bytes of block descriptor
information are specified in the parameter list.
The mode pages can be sent immediately following the header
depending on the specified parameter list length.
Parameter List—Block Descriptor
The following table presents the Parameter List block descriptor.
Byte
Bits
7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
0 Density Code
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5 MSB—Block Length
6 Block Length
7 Block Length—LSB