Owing to the high performance, the second generation (2 G) high T_C superconducting tapes based on yttrium barium copper oxide have attracted much attention of the researchers worldwide to develop the processing techniques for application. In recent years, a series of the achievements have made the 2 G tapes become the focus of the superconductor research. An overview of the recent progress of 2 G superconductor tapes was provided, and the structures and the fabrication techniques of coated conductor on Ni and Ni alloy were described systematically. Owing to the high performance, the second generation (2 G) high T_C superconducting tapes based on yttrium barium copper oxide have attracted much attention of the researchers worldwide to develop the processing techniques for application. In recent years, a series of the achievements have made the 2 G tapes become the focus of the superconductor research. An overview of the recent progress of 2 G superconductor tapes was provided, and the structures and the fabrication techniques of coated conductor on Ni and Ni alloy were systematically described.