Dmitry Brant from the Wikimedia organization presented a port of the ftape driver for modern Linux kernels. The driver stopped being updated in 2000 and was removed from kernel 2.6.20 in 2006 due to issues on multicore systems. To resume the ability to compile and run the driver in distributions with modern Linux kernels, it required a complete redesign to accommodate the changes in the internal APIs and subsystems of the kernel that have occurred over the last 20 years. <\/p>\n
The porting is noteworthy in that it was almost entirely carried out by the AI assistant Claude Code. As a result, a fully functional driver was created, capable of being compiled and operating on systems with kernels 6.8 and newer. The porting was done in three stages. In the first stage, the AI assistant was tasked with modifying the driver code, which could only be compiled with kernels 2.4, to build with the new kernel versions. The AI successfully replaced deprecated kernel function calls in the driver with current calls, corrected the use of data structures, and resolved all compilation errors. <\/p>\n
In the second stage, the task was to transform the driver from a compile-in-kernel form to a version capable of working as a loadable kernel module. The AI assistant prepared the loadable module. In the third stage, by providing the AI assistant with dmesg output containing information about errors and issues encountered during operation, as well as reference debugging dmesg messages from the working old driver, the port was brought to a functional state, able to detect the tape drive and extract the contents of the cartridges. <\/p>\n
A task that initially seemed difficult and would require several weeks of documentation study was completed in just two evenings. Creating the working module required three requests, several discussions, and a couple of manual code tweaks. Dmitry notes that one should not overestimate AI assistants, which are merely tools requiring thoughtful interaction. Dmitry knows the C language and has knowledge of kernel modules, but he believes it would be impossible to direct the AI assistant without an understanding of the internal workings of kernel modules. <\/p>\n
When formulating a task, it is essential to understand the specifics and use professional terminology, clearly defining the framework of the implemented function and identifying the gaps in this framework that the AI should fill. It is also necessary to study the strengths and weaknesses of AI assistants, so as not to assign them tasks they cannot handle well. To achieve results, Dmitry recommends treating the AI assistant as an enhancer of one's own skills, and the communication with it as a collaboration with a subordinate engineer who will do everything as instructed, is eager to please, self-confident, but acknowledges mistakes. The responsibility for decision-making, rule-setting, and results remains with the human. <\/p>\n
The ftape driver is designed to work with tape drives that use QIC cartridges, which utilize a proprietary encoding and compression format. Such devices were commonly used in the 1990s for backups. The tape drives supported by the driver did not require an expensive SCSI controller and connected to a typical floppy disk controller (for example, Colorado Jumbo 250 and Ditto Max devices) or to a parallel port (Trakker, Iomega Ditto). <\/p>\n
Ftape was the only driver capable of extracting raw-mode cartridge dumps, which allowed for the initial loading of a complete dump, followed by the decoding of the format and extraction of files. At the same time, connecting the drive through the Floppy disk controller felt like a hack, as the driver had to 'trick' the controller designed to work only with Floppy disks to send commands and facilitate interaction with the tape drive. <\/p>\n
Previously, to extract information from tape cartridges, Dmitry had to use a separate computer with CentOS 3.5 and kernel 2.4.21. After the driver was ported, it became possible to extract archives on PCs with modern Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu 24.04. Both 32-bit and 64-bit builds are supported, but a motherboard with a similar floppy disk controller is required for working with devices connected to the floppy disk controller. <\/p>\n