AMLABEL(8)

📦
version 3.5.4 · 8 versions
, in ubuntu stonking

💖 AMLABEL — labeling an Amanda tape, but make it iconic 💖

okay bestie, so this is amlabel from section 8 of the manual — that's System Administration Commands, so like, sysadmin territory, very main character. It's part of Amanda (the Advanced Maryland Automatic Network Disk Archiver, iykyk), and this little command is the one that slaps a label on a tape. Let's get into it 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

amlabel — label an Amanda tape. that's it, that's the whole job. cute, right? 💅

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

amlabel [--barcode barcode] [--meta meta-label] [--pool pool]
        [--storage storage] [--assign] [-f] [--version]
        [-o configoption...] config [label] [slot slot]

like yes it's a lot of brackets, no you don't need all of them, breathe 🫶

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so basically: this command applies a label to an Amanda volume, and it erases the volume in the process. like, gone. wiped. that's not a bug, that's the vibe. ⚠️

Amanda uses labels to identify volumes. amdump(8) and amflush(8) verify the label before writing, so they can make sure the proper volume is actually loaded, and the recovery programs use the label to make sure they're reading the data they expect. it's giving ✨ trust issues, but the healthy kind ✨

now here's how the target works, and this part you gotta know:

  • if no [slot] and no [barcode] is given, then amlabel labels the tape in the current slot of the default changer
  • if a slot is given, it labels the volume in that slot
  • if a barcode is given, it labels the volume with that barcode

label can be literally any string that has no whitespace in it and that matches the labelstr (peep amanda.conf(5) for that).

and if [label] is not given at all? no stress — an autolabel gets generated. see autolabel in amanda.conf(5) 💖

okay now the plot twist: if [--assign] is given, the label gets interpretad as an expression — yes that's how it's spelled in the original, we don't fix the source, we respect the source 🙈 — and the barcode, meta-label, pool, storage and config get assigned to all labels matching the expression. the volumes are not labelled. and here's the catch: the labels must already be in the tapelist file. no new friends, only existing ones 🫶

this command also appends the new volume to the tapelist(5) file, so that they'll be used in the order they are labeled — well, depending on the taperscan in use, see amanda-taperscan(7). slay in an orderly fashion 💅

and finally, safety girl era: as a precaution, amlabel will not write a label if the volume already contains an active label, or if the label specified is on an active tape. the [-f] (force) flag bypasses these verifications. so like, -f means "i said what i said" and it will absolutely let you do the chaotic thing 🔥

👑 OPTIONS 👑

  • --barcode barcode — with [--assign], it assigns the barcode to the label. without [--assign], it labels the volume with that barcode. two moods, one flag ✨
  • --meta meta-label — assigns the meta label to the label after labeling the volume. after, bestie, not before 💖
  • --pool pool — assigns the pool to the label after labeling the volume. same deal, after the fact 🎀
  • --storage storage — assigns the storage to the label. it can only be used with --assign, so like… you can't assign a storage to a new labelled volume. that's just the rules, no cap 🚫
  • --assign — assigns the barcode or meta-label to the label without labeling the volume. and the label must already be in the tapelist file. existing besties only 🫶
  • -f — force the label operation; see above. the "i'm choosing violence today" button 💀
  • --version — output version information. a little flex, a little receipt 📋
  • -o configoption — see the "CONFIGURATION OVERRIDE" section in amanda(8). customizable? we love her 🌈

🌟 EXAMPLE 🌟

write an Amanda label with the string "DMP000" on the current volume:

% amlabel daily DMP000

label the tape in slot 3 of the changer with the label "DMP003":

% amlabel daily DMP003 slot 3

see that? clean. efficient. iconic. periodt 💅

😭 MESSAGES 😭

these are the lil notes Amanda sends when things don't go to plan. read them, they're literally telling you what's wrong:

  • Label 'label' doesn't match labelstr 'labelstr' — the given label does not match the configured labelstr. and even with -f, this is an error. even force can't save you here, bestie 😭
  • Label 'label' already on a volume — the given label is already on another volume in the tapelist, and Amanda will not write it to this volume unless forced. it's taken 💔
  • Found label 'label', but it is not from configuration config. — the label amlabel found on the volume doesn't match this configuration's labelstr, so it's probably part of a different Amanda configuration. Amanda will not overwrite the label unless it is forced. different universe, different lore 🌌
  • Volume with label 'label' contains data from this configuration. — the label amlabel found on the volume still has valid data on it, and Amanda will not overwrite it unless forced. and note: this does not distinguish between active and inactive volumes. so don't assume, okay? 🙈

🧚 SEE ALSO 🧚

amanda(8), amanda.conf(5), tapelist(5), amanda-taperscan(7), amdump(8), amflush(8)

The Amanda Wiki: http://wiki.zmanda.com/

go read them, they're all connected, it's a whole cinematic universe 🔥

💜 AUTHORS 💜

  • James da Silva <jds@amanda.org>
  • Stefan G. Weichinger <sgw@amanda.org>
  • Dustin J. Mitchell <dustin@zmanda.com> — Zmanda, Inc. (http://www.zmanda.com)

and that's the page, babes 🫶 this was Amanda 3.5.4, dated 08/26/2026 — so when you're out there labeling tapes and erasing volumes like a menace, just remember who wrote the lore: the Amanda crew. now go forth and amlabel responsibly, or at least amlabel -f dramatically 💅✨🌈

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