>Not pretty, nor should be necessary (who on Earth wanted/requested >database catalog of all backed up stuff - when flat file list stored >on the tape itself would do it nicely) If you have, say, 2500 tapes in the library, which one has that flat file on it? Great point, only I have "slight difficulty" picturing Windows box "driving" 2500 unit tape library. Somehow one-on one is most often Windows mantra in which case searching flat files is the way I'd like it. BTW, many moons ago I had ArcServe which too tended to build and maintain its own database (that could not be turned off), which by itself became corrupted and could not be purged, so when it eventually ate most of humongous (for that time) 4GB HDD - I got rid of ArcServe, hating the very idea of backup catalog databases ever since. Branimir -- //www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l