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ERROR_EOM_OVERFLOW
Physical end of tape encountered.
ERROR_EOM_OVERFLOW is Win32 error 1129 (0x469). It means a tape operation encountered the physical end of the medium. This is different from reaching a logical filemark, setmark, or the current end of recorded data: the drive has no further physical tape available for the requested movement or transfer.
Where it appears
- backup software writing beyond the usable capacity of a cartridge
- restore or verification tools positioning past the physical end
- tape-copy and archival applications using absolute or logical block addresses
- a drive reporting reduced usable capacity because of media defects or format differences
- virtual tape libraries that emulate physical end-of-medium behavior
Do not interpret the code as a generic arithmetic overflow. “EOM” is end of medium, and the necessary context is tape position, partition, block size, compression, and the operation that crossed the physical boundary.
Evidence to record
- drive and cartridge identity, media type, partition, and reported capacity
- logical or absolute tape position before the request
- requested transfer size or positioning method
- fixed or variable block mode and current block size
- hardware compression setting, bytes written, and the last filemark or setmark
Capacity estimates can differ from actual usable space because compression ratio and media condition vary. A backup system should record both logical data size and device-reported position rather than assuming the cartridge label guarantees a fixed payload.
Handling a write operation
Stop the current write sequence in a format-aware way. If the backup format supports spanning, finalize the current volume as far as possible, request the next cartridge, and continue using the format’s documented continuation record. Do not simply retry the same block indefinitely against physical end of tape.
If spanning is not supported, mark the backup incomplete and retain enough metadata to avoid presenting it as restorable. Reusing the cartridge requires a new planned write sequence, not continuation from an ambiguous partial state.
Handling reads and positioning
- verify that the requested partition and block address came from the same medium format
- query tape status, parameters, and current position before another move
- distinguish physical EOM from end-of-data and ordinary filemarks
- check whether the catalog belongs to another cartridge or an earlier reformat
- for a virtual library, verify the configured virtual-media capacity
A read beyond the cataloged end may indicate bad metadata rather than damaged tape. Compare catalog position with the drive’s reported position and partition layout.
Related tape results
ERROR_END_OF_MEDIA and tape-status APIs can represent media-boundary conditions, while ERROR_FILEMARK_DETECTED and ERROR_SETMARK_DETECTED identify logical markers. Error 1129 explicitly names the physical end and should trigger capacity or positioning logic.
Example
A backup job estimates capacity using an assumed 2:1 compression ratio, but the data is already compressed and the cartridge reaches physical EOM early. The writer receives 1129. The correct recovery is a supported media-spanning transition or an incomplete-backup result, not rewriting the final block in a loop.
References
- Microsoft: System Error Codes (1000–1299)
- Microsoft: Tape initialization
- Microsoft: Tape input and output
- Microsoft: GetTapeStatus function
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