Which of the following can the administrator do to verify that a tape backup can be recovered in its entirety?

Reading only the first 512 bytes verifies the tape header or label area but provides no information about the integrity or completeness of the backed-up data that follows.

A full restore is the only method that conclusively verifies a backup's integrity from beginning to end. It exercises the actual recovery path - reading all tape blocks, reassembling the data stream, and writing restored files - which confirms both media integrity and backup software compatibility. Any other approach leaves unverified portions of the backup untested.

Reading only the last 512 bytes may confirm the tape has an end marker but does not validate that all data in between was written correctly and is recoverable.

Restoring a random single file verifies that one file is readable but gives no assurance that the remaining files and data on the tape are intact or recoverable.