backup to tape failed

I was trying to do a backup to tape but it failed with the following message:

Msg 3229, Level 16, State 2, Line 2

Request for device '\\.\Tape0' timed out.

Msg 3013, Level 16, State 1, Line 2

BACKUP DATABASE is terminating abnormally.

Any clues why this happened?

Any help is appreciated.

Take a look at the system event log and sql errorlogs.

You may have a hardware issue with the tape drive (or the connection to it...).

If the OS returned an error code to sql server, it will have been logged in the errorlog.

That 3229 is also raised if a tape mount was pending but a new tape was not loaded prior to the timeout. However, that instance should have "state = 1" and not 2 as you report.

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Thanks for the help. The problem was with the MEDIANAME. i was specifying a new Medianame.

If MEDIANAME is specified, it must match the previously specified media name already existing on the backup volume.

Thanks Anyways