Backup Problems with Colorado Trakker Drive on ECP or EPP Port

 Last reviewed: May 8, 1996
Article ID: Q137697
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows 95

SYMPTOMS

If you have a Colorado Trakker tape drive installed in your computer, you may receive the following message when you start Microsoft Backup: 

   The parallel port your tape drive is connected to is configured as an
   ECP, Enhanced, or Bi-Directional port. Using your tape drive with this
   configuration will not work reliably and you will not be able to
   recover data from tapes. To use your tape drive without data loss on
   this port, the port configuration must be changed to NON-ECP mode.
Even if you do not receive this message, you may not be able to back up, compare, or restore files reliably using Backup. When you try to back up, compare, or restore files, you may receive any of the following error messages:
  • Unable to transfer data properly. Retry the operation.
  • Tape header contains unexpected or invalid values. Microsoft Backup encountered an error reading this tape. This error may be caused by an unformatted or incorrectly formatted tape. Reformat the tape, and then try again.

NOTE: You may not receive any error messages when you back up files, but you may then be unable to compare or restore the files. If you can restore the files, the data that is restored to your hard disk may be damaged.

CAUSE

The problems described above can occur when you are using a Colorado Trakker tape drive connected to a parallel port that is in extended capabilities port (ECP) or enhanced parallel port (EPP) mode. Backup does not function properly with Colorado Trakker tape drives connected to ECP or EPP ports.

RESOLUTION

Configure the parallel port so that it is not in ECP or EPP mode. For information about how to configure a parallel port on your computer, please consult the computer's documentation or manufacturer.

MORE INFORMATION

Backup may be able to determine when a Colorado Trakker tape drive is connected to an ECP or EPP port. When it does, it generates the message stated earlier in this article. However, because of the lack of a standard implementation for ECP and EPP ports, Backup cannot always detect an ECP or EPP port. When Backup cannot detect that an ECP or EPP port is being used, the problems described in this article can occur.

KBCategory: kbtool kbenv
KBSubcategory: win95 mwbackup
Additional reference words: 95

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Last reviewed: May 8, 1996
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