On our 928RX, running with MPE/iX 5.0, we have an HPC1503B DDS drive on ldev 7 which has been configured for autoreply mode and a 7978 on ldev 9 which is not configured for autoreply. After loading either a DDS cartridge or 9-track tape, a console message reports the volume which has been mounted and SHOWDEV reports appropriate information. If however the tape is manually ejected or removed from the drive without being accessed, SHOWDEV still reports the old VOLID and DEN which might be seen as indicating that the tape is still available. Any ideas on how to disable this 'feature' or suggestions on how to remotely determine the actual status of a tape drive will be greatly appreciated.