USB and LaunchELF

[jlaj1989]

I got a question. How do you get the launchELF confg file to save on usb? I am booting LauchELF of USB, and when it loads it says Failed to Load the config file. And when i first set it up it says it has saved the config file to the usb. I am booting it with Swap Magic. I put the elf on my usb flash drive and put the swap magic disc in and it will load it up. I dont know if thats why or not.

[dlanor]

I got a question. How do you get the launchELF confg file to save on usb? I am booting LauchELF of USB, and when it loads it says Failed to Load the config file. And when i first set it up it says it has saved the config file to the usb. I am booting it with Swap Magic. I put the elf on my usb flash drive and put the swap magic disc in and it will load it up. I dont know if thats why or not.

Several possibilities exist, and the simplest explanation would be if you used v3.79 through v3.84 of uLaunchELF, as those versions all had a bug in the loading of initial CNF when booting from USB drives. But if that was not your problem, then it becomes a little more complex.

When LaunchELF boots up it needs to load the CNF file before performing reset of the IO processor and loading new drivers, because that file spedifies if/how IOP reset should be used at all, or not, and trying to load drivers that conflict with those used to start LaunchELF in the first place could cause a crash. So at this early stage LaunchELF *must* use the drivers loaded before itself to load the CNF, and in your case that means drivers provided by the Swap Magic boot routines.

Now, if the loading of a CNF fails at that point, even though you are sure that you have a LAUNCHELF.CNF file in the same folder as the ELF, then that could mean that the USB drivers of Swap Magic are incompatible with our usb_mass usage. If so, there's nothing I can do to change that.

I'm not sure at all about this compatibility, so other Swap Magic users should chip in here, and state how they do this, and how it works for them.

But you may be able to get it to boot LaunchELF correctly anyway, simply by placing a copy of that CNF file in the default location "mc0:/SYS-CONF/". That's where LaunchELF will always look for it when not found (successfully) in the folder of the ELF. Hopefully the drivers used by Swap Magic for memory cards are more compatible (as we use the Sony drivers for that).

Best regards: dlanor

[jlaj1989]

yes im using the most updated version of ulaunchelf, i just updated last night. I can use my usb flash drive with no problems in launchelf when i load it from memory card, so i dont see why i would have a problem with the usb_mass file.

All i have to do with my swap magic is make a folder called SWAPMAGIC then copy the elf file into the folder and rename it to SWAPMAGIC.ELF, then just pop the flash drive in and put the swap magic cd in and it wil boot it up but again it fails to load the LAUNCHELF.CNF Would changing the name have anything to do with it?

I have tryed that with the memory card but i would like to keep it all on the usb so i can just take the flash drive and cd with me, instead of memory cards, usb, cds. Id jsut like to keep it simple.

What about the compressed and the uncompressed versions does this have anything to do with it. I use the uncompressed. By the way whats the difference? Are they self explanitory?

[jlaj1989]

I tried putting the config file it came with all over the place on the flash drive, and again no luck. Then i jsut tried botting it in the FILE BROWSER, and boom it loads jsut fine with the congfig loaded. So i though thats kinda weird i think.

[dlanor]

yes im using the most updated version of ulaunchelf, i just updated last night. I can use my usb flash drive with no problems in launchelf when i load it from memory card, so i dont see why i would have a problem with the usb_mass file.

I never said there was any problem with our usb_mass file.

What I said is that there may be a compatibility problem between our usb_mass usage, and the usb_mass driver supplied by SwapMagic, since that is the driver still active when the initial CNF loading must occur. In such a case there's nothing I can do, as I have no access to their source code.

All i have to do with my swap magic is make a folder called SWAPMAGIC then copy the elf file into the folder and rename it to SWAPMAGIC.ELF, then just pop the flash drive in and put the swap magic cd in and it wil boot it up but again it fails to load the LAUNCHELF.CNF Would changing the name have anything to do with it?

uLaunchELF doesn't care at all what the name of the folder or of the ELF file is. All it cares about in the way of names is that of the CNF file, which should be "LAUNCHELF.CNF".

I have tryed that with the memory card but i would like to keep it all on the usb so i can just take the flash drive and cd with me, instead of memory cards, usb, cds. Id jsut like to keep it simple.

Well, then maybe you just have to accept the missing CNF on initial boot, and restart it manually each time, as that is guaranteed to load the CNF.

As for simplicity, the simplest way of all would be to install it entirely to MC instead, as SwapMagic can also launch programs on MC. Then you just have to bring the CD and that MC (in place of the flash drive). That's still just two objects, so it can't get much simpler.

What about the compressed and the uncompressed versions does this have anything to do with it.

No.

I use the uncompressed. By the way whats the difference? Are they self explanitory?

"uncompressed" means it's just as the compiler made it, wasting lots of space, whereas the other one has been compressed to a more reasonable size.

In normal use both act the same, though the compressed one has an extra routine that uncompresses the main program at startup. The only reason both are supplied is that some software can have problems with that 'extra routine'. But such problems are very rare, and probably not relevant in your case.

Best regards: dlanor

[Stand]

Hi dlanor,
I have a different problem with the usb drive too. I can access the pen drive in the filebrowser. It just that very often when I use the quicklist R2 button that I stored a folder in the usb drive, the program froze and I have to reboot the thing. Can you look into this if it is a bug. Thanks

[dlanor]

I tried putting the config file it came with all over the place on the flash drive, and again no luck.

Why even try ?
I already told you that if the program can't find the CNF in the same file as the ELF, there is only one other place it will look, and that's "mc0:/SYS-CONF/".

Then i jsut tried botting it in the FILE BROWSER, and boom it loads jsut fine with the congfig loaded. So i though thats kinda weird i think.

There's nothing weird about that...

When you start uLE from uLE, then the drivers active before the new uLE started will also be used for it's CNF loading, and those drivers are obviously 100% compatible, since they are the ones uLE was designed to use.

But when you start uLE from SwapMagic, then the SwapMagic drivers must be used to load the CNF, and that's an entirely different matter, with no guarantees of any compatibility.

Best regards: dlanor

[jlaj1989]

So the problem your saying is swap magic isnt compatiable with my flash drive? And i was jsut trying, putting the file every where, i was getting fed up with it after spending a day and half, and about 10 cds that are now friesbes.

I have one more question. If i make a cd with lauchelf, and i make a config file to go with it, will that load or will it be an error to? I would swap it with swap magic.

[dlanor]

So the problem your saying is swap magic isnt compatiable with my flash drive?

Why do you keep twisting my statements ? I said nothing of the kind.

What I said was that the SwapMagic drivers don't appear compatible with the usage of usb_mass in uLaunchELF. That has nothing to do with the compatibility to any hardware anywhere. It only means that two pieces of software are too different to cooperate well together.

And i was jsut trying, putting the file every where, i was getting fed up with it after spending a day and half, and about 10 cds that are now friesbes.

I have one more question. If i make a cd with lauchelf, and i make a config file to go with it, will that load or will it be an error to? I would swap it with swap magic.

I have made bootable CDs that work fine here, but I really don't know how/if SwapMagic would affect that. I don't have SwapMagic, and no real reason to buy it (I already have a mod chip), so I can't test those things.

Perhaps some other user of SwapMagic can help you better with that stuff.

Best regards: dlanor

[jlaj1989]

What if i use a differnet usb_mass file with LaunchELF, instead of default. Since you said "SwapMagic drivers don't appear compatible with the usage of usb_mass in uLaunchELF", will that woek maybe?

When i first try it it makes a config file labbeled /SWAPMAGIC/LAUNCHELF.CNF in the mass:/. Isnt it supose to put it with the Launchelf file. mass:/SWAPMAGIC/LAUNCHELF.ELF? It jsut make a file with the folder path.