For anyone who is seeing wacky error messages regarding their CD or DVD burner, I have some info from a post on the kernel mailing list. I combed through Google for what seemed like days since I only saw this error after my upgrade to kernel 2.6.13. Here's the exchange:

ORIGINAL MSG

List: linux-kernel
Subject: DVD+-R[W] regression in 2.6.12/13
From: Oliver Tennert <O.Tennert () science-computing ! de>
Date: 2005-09-05 13:33:01
Message-ID: 200509051533.01465.tennert () science-computing ! de
[Download message RAW]

Hello together,

with my machine, an

"hdparm -I /dev/dvdrecorder" leads to the output:

/dev/dvdrecorder:
HDIO_DRIVE_CMD(identify) failed: Input/output error

The kernel tells me:

[4296893.262000] hdd: drive_cmd: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplete Error }
[4296893.262000] hdd: drive_cmd: error=0x04 { AbortedCommand }
[4296893.262000] ide: failed opcode was: 0xec

This happens with 2.6.12 and 2.6.13. DMA works fine, though. And burning
CDs/DVDs seems to work fine, too.

The same hdparm command to a "normal" CD or DVD ROM drive (no writer) does not
produces any error messages, though.

So what does this strange opcode do, and why does it fail in the latest
kernels?

/dev/dvdrecorder is a Plextor 708A, the error also occurs with a Plextor 716A.

Best regards

Oliver

REPLY

List: linux-kernel
Subject: Re: DVD+-R[W] regression in 2.6.12/13
From: Mark Lord <lkml () rtr ! ca>
Date: 2005-09-05 16:24:17
Message-ID: 431C7131.3030506 () rtr ! ca
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Oliver Tennert wrote:
>
> "hdparm -I /dev/dvdrecorder" leads to the output:
>
> /dev/dvdrecorder:
> HDIO_DRIVE_CMD(identify) failed: Input/output error
>
> The kernel tells me:
>
> [4296893.262000] hdd: drive_cmd: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplete Error }
> [4296893.262000] hdd: drive_cmd: error=0x04 { AbortedCommand }
> [4296893.262000] ide: failed opcode was: 0xec

Those messages are "normal" for an ATAPI drive.

hdparm first tries the IDENTIFY opcode (0xec), and if that fails (above)
it then tries the PACKET_IDENTIFY opcode (0xa1), which should work for ATAPI.

I'm not sure why the "failed: Input/output error" (-EIO) result is
being returned from the ATA layer in this case. Driver bug, most likely.

Cheers

FINAL FOLLOW-UP

List: linux-kernel
Subject: Re: DVD+-R[W] regression in 2.6.12/13
From: Mark Lord <lkml () rtr ! ca>
Date: 2005-09-05 16:27:00
Message-ID: 431C71D4.8070402 () rtr ! ca
[Download message RAW]

Oh, you *should* be able to get the results you
are looking for (hdparm -I) by trying it this way:

hdparm --Istdin </proc/ide/hdd/identify

Cheers


--Akshun J