PS3 (60GB) PS2-Memory-Card Questions (Official PS3 VMC vs OPL VMC)

[burnmydread]

Hi... I searched for awhile on the forums but couldn't really find an answer to my question, so I'll post it here. If there is actually an already established answer and I simply haven't found it, then I apologize.


I have a PS3 60GB/BC. I'm using OPL 0.8.857 (built through Yoshi314's amazing VirtualBox image (Download Ubuntu Virtual Machine + enviroment to compile OPL)) via SwapMagic 3.8 to access my PS2 games through SMB. So far, everything is working fine. No (or at least, unnoticable) FMV lag, gameplay seems perfect on my (admittedly few) tested titles. Great job, all around!

To get the rest of my PS2 gaming habit transferred up into my PS3, I wanted to deal with memory cards and save games.

-- When I load a game (say, Devil May Cry 3) via OPL, it asks if I want to make a save on the memory card. Answering yes does not actually create a save in the official PS3 virtual memory card. When I run DMC3 again, it asks again about creating a save.

-- I can create an OPL VMC (I see the VMC created on my SMB share), but when it asks if I want to make save on the memory card, answering yes does not create a save in the OPL virtual memory card either. When I run DMC3 again, it asks again about creating a save.

So I have a few questions.

#1 - Is there any possible way to use the official PS3 virtual memory card saves, or will everything loaded through OPL be required to use the OPL VMCs?

#2 - What is the best way to transfer PS2 memory card saves to the OPL VMC (or PS3, if that's the better option)?


Thanks so much!

[dlanor]

I have a PS3 60GB/BC. I'm using OPL 0.8.857 (built through Yoshi314's amazing VirtualBox image (Download Ubuntu Virtual Machine + enviroment to compile OPL)) via SwapMagic 3.8 to access my PS2 games through SMB. So far, everything is working fine. No (or at least, unnoticable) FMV lag, gameplay seems perfect on my (admittedly few) tested titles. Great job, all around!

To get the rest of my PS2 gaming habit transferred up into my PS3, I wanted to deal with memory cards and save games.

-- When I load a game (say, Devil May Cry 3) via OPL, it asks if I want to make a save on the memory card. Answering yes does not actually create a save in the official PS3 virtual memory card. When I run DMC3 again, it asks again about creating a save.

I assume that you at this time did NOT have OPL configured to use VMC for this game.
Right ?

If so, then it appears that DMC3 may have a problem with OPL itself or with the PS3 VMC implementation or possibly just with the combination of both. I can't check which it is myself as I have neither the game nor a BC PS3...

-- I can create an OPL VMC (I see the VMC created on my SMB share), but when it asks if I want to make save on the memory card, answering yes does not create a save in the OPL virtual memory card either. When I run DMC3 again, it asks again about creating a save.

So after creating an OPL VMC for this game and activating its use, you still get the same result in DMC3, of it failing to save properly.
Right ?

Did you double-check after creating the VMC and testing its use that the VMC really was selected properly for the game, by again using 'Triangle' command in the OPL game list with that game selected to check the game specific setup ?
(Any problem with storing the config file might cause the VMC setup to be 'forgotten' config-wise.)

#1 - Is there any possible way to use the official PS3 virtual memory card saves,

Yes, that will be the case for every game that you have not individually configured to use OPL-style VMC instead.

or will everything loaded through OPL be required to use the OPL VMCs?

Not at all. VMC will only be used in a game after selecting to use VMC in the game-specific configuration menu of that game. OPL settings for all other games remain unaffected by such a change.

#2 - What is the best way to transfer PS2 memory card saves to the OPL VMC (or PS3, if that's the better option)?

One way is to first use uLE v4.42a on a PS2 to transform gamesave folders from a PS2 MC into PSU files on a USB drive by use of the psuPaste command in the R1 menu of the uLE FileManager, which creates one PSU file per original gamesave folder.

Then you can move that USB drive to a PS3 for restoration of those PSU files, which is done a little differently for a PS3 VMC and for an OPL VMC. But in both cases you should do it by booting the PS3 into PS2 mode and running that same uLE v4.42a and using its FileManager.

For PS3 VMC
Since PS3 VMC is the native MC of a PS3 in PS2 mode, you just treat it as normal PS2 MC, which here means that you in FileManager browse to the USB drive to use the 'Copy' command with one or more PSU files on that drive selected, after which you browse to "mc0:/" (in fact the PS3 VMC for this PS2 setup) where you then use the psuPaste command, which then recreates the original gamesave folder corresponding to each of the chosen PSU files. (NB: Here I'm assuming that uLE works fine with the PS3 VMC implementation, though I never can try it in person due to lack of BC PS3s here...)

for OPL VMC
This works a little differently, and some care should be taken as the VMC driver of uLE is still not fully debugged. So you should always start this work with a backup of the VMC file for a game, and preferably an unused still empty VMC file, newly created by OPL.
In the uLE FileManager you then browse to that VMC file on the USB drive (NOT over network), and with that VMC file highlighted you use the R1 menu command "Mount vmc0:", which then mounts that VMC file for access as device "vmc0:/" that is added to the root drive list of the FileManager for the rest of this FileManager session, and the browser is also navigated inside the root directory of that VMC (convenient only when copying stuff the other way). What you then do is simply to back out of that directory, so you can see the newly added device entry in the root drive list of the FileManager. And from here on you do almost the same things as described above for the case of PS3 VMC, except that when you'd go into "mc0:/" to restore original gamesave folders, you instead use the "vmc0:/" device to do the same thing.

NB: Special rules for use of mounted VMC in uLE
You must NEVER EVER try to overwrite any file or folder in VMC. (bugged)
You must NEVER EVER try to delete any file or folder in VMC. (bugged)
Those two rules are the reason you'd better start with a fresh, empty VMC.
After changing mounted VMC content you must avoid disconnecting the USB drive until you have first exited from the uLE FileManager (done just by pressing 'Select' button). It is only at that time that the VMC file is closed and the final data written to it, so disconnection before that closure would corrupt the VMC.

NB: As I said above, I have no BC PS3 available for testing, so the above is based on what works on my PS2 consoles, combined with what others tell me of BC PS3 behavior.

Hopefully this is enough for you to make it work at your end.

Best regards: dlanor