openLTFS

This is an open and neutral LTFS (Linear Tape File System) implementation, without the proprietary extensions from the different vendors. It implements the version 2.5.1 of the format specification, also standardised as ISO/IEC 20919:2021. It supports not only tape drives, but also do-it-yourself tape librairies. The proof of concept is done with the openLTO package.

The openLTFS package contains the libltfs C library, which provides the classic ltfs and mkltfs commands, as well as the ltfs_check and ltfs_copy commands, and the openltfs Bash command-line interface. The package is released under a 3-Clause BSD License and is provided “as is” without warranty or support of any kind. The source code will become freely available, as soon as a public beta will be released.

Documentation

The man pages are available as PDF files:

• ltfs – Linear Tape File System
• mkltfs – Format a cartridge in an LTO drive with the LTFS format
• ltfs_check – Check the integrity of an LTFS-formatted cartridge
• ltfs_copy – Copy Tool for LTFS
• libltfs – LTFS for both tape drives and DIY tape libraries
• openltfs – Command-line interface to the libltfs library

The Change Log file is available as well.

Beta Release

Our clients can already install and use a private beta by running the following two commands in the Terminal, after connecting to our extranet:

brew tap avpres/formulae
brew install openltfs

The Homebrew formula was successfully tested on various modern x86-64 and AArch64 architectures, running under the following operating systems:

• Linux: Debian 12.9 and 11.11; Ubuntu 24.10, 24.04.1 LTS, 22.04.5 LTS and 20.04.6 LTS; Slackware 15.0
• Macintosh: macOS 15.3.1, 14.7.3 and 13.7.3
• Windows: 11 version 24H2, 23H2 and 22H2, running Terminal or Subsystem for Linux

2025-02-11