[Simh] Writing tap files back to a real tape

[Zane H. Healy]

At 7:15 PM -0800 11/23/06, Robert Armstrong wrote:
>   Is there a program (preferably for VMS, since that's where I have 
>the hardware) to write a tape image file back to a real tape ?

Good question, what would it take to modify the TCP-to-TAP program to 
do TAP-to-TPC?

I do know one or two ways to do this, but neither will be easy.  If 
you're running a new enough version of RSX-11M+ you can read the TAP 
file in under an emulator to a RSX-11M+ virtual tape image.  That 
image can then be copied to a real PDP-11 running RSX-11M+ (I've done 
this using both CD-R's and ethernet), and then you can write it out 
to a real tape.  The frightening thing here is I started out with TPC 
images that I was requested to convert.

An alternative to this that would probably work would require either 
VMS running on the VAX emulator or RSX-11M or M+ running on the 
PDP-11 emulator.  Then use the appropriate TPC utility to create a 
TPC image when reading the TAP file with the emulator.  Then you have 
to copy the resulting images out of the emulator.  I'm guessing doing 
this under VMS would be the easiest as that's the easiest way to get 
networking software.  I have not done this, but as the M+ virtual 
tape solution works, this should as well.

		Zane



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| Zane H. Healy                    | UNIX Systems Administrator |
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