How to run homebrew ELF files from CD/DVD with FMCB?

**travlemon** · 03-14-2009,02:12 PM

Hi,

I'm not sure if I should post here or in the FMCB thread. I am new to the PS2 MC exploit/mod scene, and tackled the task of installing FMCB on a Memor32 (it would take me 10 minutes to do the whole thing now that I know how haha). I downloaded the NES emulator for PS2, with the ELF files and such. I would like to, if possible, use FMCB to run this emulator off of a DVD disc rather than a hard drive. Is this possible? I've also configured my PS2 to launch uLaunch at startup if I hold R1. Would I need to browse to the disc and manually launch the ELF file that way? I have trouble accessing CDFS on uLaunch to browse my DVD disc (with the NES emulator files burned to the root of the drive).

This is why I'm unsure if this should be a uLaunch or FMCB thread. Help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

**lesnar1234** · 03-14-2009,02:41 PM

well.. it can be dirctly run from the DVD by exploring cdfs in uLaunch...
regarding ur problem.. are u using latest ulaunch???

**travlemon** · 03-14-2009,05:52 PM

Originally Posted by lesnar1234

well.. it can be dirctly run from the DVD by exploring cdfs in uLaunch...
regarding ur problem.. are u using latest ulaunch???

I'm actually not sure. Is there a way to update the ulaunch that shows up in the FMCB menu? I'm using FMCB 1.8, installed with the noobie package.

EDIT - I was just able to upgrade to ulaunch 4.36 and when I browse to CDFS...it just shows an empty folder. However I know for absolute sure that the DVD has data on it, as I checked numerous times. I upgraded from 4.36 to 4.39 and same thing. Any help is appreciated.

**TehJawknee** · 03-15-2009,07:43 AM

Originally Posted by travlemon

I'm actually not sure. Is there a way to update the ulaunch that shows up in the FMCB menu? I'm using FMCB 1.8, installed with the noobie package.

Your version of ULE shouldn't matter much. FMCB 1.8 is the newest edition, so you're cool there. If you want to take a look at this thread, you'll find DJFlex's YouTube tutorial on how to add a shortcut to SNES Station from your memory card onto the main menu.

As for running it off a DVD, I'd suggest a USB drive or the memory card itself. Save your laser, man. It's easier to run it off a USB than to make a mistake making a DVD and ending up with a coaster. Plus, it's easier to load more roms onto the USB later.

**dlanor** · 03-21-2009,03:48 PM

Originally Posted by travlemon

I'm actually not sure. Is there a way to update the ulaunch that shows up in the FMCB menu? I'm using FMCB 1.8, installed with the noobie package.

EDIT - I was just able to upgrade to ulaunch 4.36 and when I browse to CDFS...it just shows an empty folder.

This is perfectly normal. An unmodded console only allows access to burned DVD discs if they contain DVD-Video data (which the ESR patch simulates), and the cdfs: driver of uLE is not compatible with accessing DVD-Video discs. It can only access CD-ROM discs, so the ESR driver is needed to make the disc accessible to uLE. (If uLE was able to access DVD-Video data it still wouldn't help, as that is just dummy data on an ESR disc.)

However I know for absolute sure that the DVD has data on it, as I checked numerous times. I upgraded from 4.36 to 4.39 and same thing. Any help is appreciated.

In order to access an ESR-patched homebrew DVD from uLE on an unmodded console you will need to activate the ESR driver, in such a way that ESR relaunches uLE with the ESR driver still resident and active in the background.

There are several ways to achieve this:

1: Run the 'mcard' variant of the ESR elf files
2: Run the 'GUI' variant of the ESR elf files, and use its "Launch APP" command
3: Run the 'GUI' variant of the ESR elf files, and use its "Launch OSDSYS" command
4: Boot an ESR-patched boot disc for uLE (as released in the uLE subforum)

Once ESR has been activated this way it will remain resident and active in the background until the next hard reset. So any other application that you launch from uLE should also be able to access that ESR-patched disc (or any other ESR-patched disc you insert).

Best regards: dlanor

**travlemon** · 08-09-2009,01:45 PM

Hi,

Being the "noob" that I am, haha, it took me a while to finally figure out just how simple it really is to install Free MCBoot properly onto a Memor32 card. Anyway, I've been able to run backup games quite easily, after using the ESR patcher on the ISO images. However, I tried to run some emulators for PS2, so I burned the .elf files and other included files to a CD-R. I then booted up the PS2 into Free MCBoot, and chose the uLaunchElf program. When I browse to the CD, it shows nothing. Does anyone have advise on this? Is there a way to patch the discs similar to what the ESR patcher is doing? I've tried enabling and disabling disc control in ulaunch, but no luck. Any help is appreciated!

EDIT- I realized that I had posted a very similar thread back in March. I think I may just need to be patching homebrew discs with the ESR patcher? I receive "No UDF descriptor!" when I try to patch a homebrew ISO that I created. Is there a special way for me to create the ISO?

**travlemon** · 08-09-2009,02:21 PM

Hi, I didn't realize that I received responses to my thread! I was unaware that I had to use the ESR patcher to patch a homebrew ISO. However, I receive "No UDF Descriptor!" when trying to patch a homebrew ISO that I made. Can you tell me if there is a special way to create the homebrew ISO images?

**amp2006** · 08-09-2009,03:39 PM

why dont you use DVD Decrypter to make a fresh image then use ESR Patcher to patch the image and then use IMBURN to burn it at a good quality media on a mid.speed .

esr only works with patched dvds

**travlemon** · 08-10-2009,11:58 PM

Hello! I am hoping this will be my last post, as I've trying to find a decent way to launch homebrew on FMCB from DVD media.

First, a little background on what I've accomplished. At first, I didn't realize that homebrew discs need to be ESR patched just as normal backup copies of games. So, my curiosity was how to actually create an ISO image that ESR will patch. I would compile my homebrew to an ISO, but ESR would report "No UDF descriptor". After lots of Googling, I found a kit to rebuild images to DVD. This worked for me and I was able to view the files on the DVD via uLaunchElf and launch the homebrew that way. I could also choose "Launch App" from the ESR menu and it would work. The problem with that kit is that CDVDGen cuts all the filenames to the 8.3 naming convention. This is very cumbersome when using an emulator, as it's hard to tell one ROM file from another

.

Now, the issue I'd like to tackle: A different way to create the image files so that the filenames are not cut off at 8 characters. I recently obtained a SNES Station image file, which appears to have been created as a DVD video image some how. Can anyone tell me how to create an image like this? This type of burned disc seems to operate precisely the way I want it to.

Some info on the image file. It was a .NRG file, and I converted it to .ISO. When I view it with ISO buster, the tree looks like this:

Session 1
>Track 01
>[ISO] SNES
>[>>>] SNES
>[UDF] DVDVIDEO

The actually SNES Station files are stored in the ISO and >>> portions of the disc. In the DVDVIDEO portion, there are the typical VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS folders. The audio folder is empty, but the video folder has 2 files. They are VIDEO_TS.IFO and VIDEO_TS.bup. The BUP, appears to be a backup, but the IFO is unreadable in any of the IFO file viewers that I've used.

Can anyone give me info on how this image file could have been created? Perhaps point me in the direction of the right software to use? I have Isobuster, Nero, MagicIso and I'm just plain stuck. Any help is appreciated!

**dlanor** · 08-11-2009,06:34 AM

Originally Posted by travlemon

Some info on the image file. It was a .NRG file, and I converted it to .ISO. When I view it with ISO buster, the tree looks like this:

I'm glad you have and use IsoBuster, since that is the only good tool for showing parallel filesystems on a disc. So many other users tend to believe that the content shown by other programs is all there is on their discs, which is obviously wrong.

Session 1
>Track 01
>[ISO] SNES
>[>>>] SNES
>[UDF] DVDVIDEO

This is the appearance of the disc as displayed by IsoBuster after having patched the disc image for ESR. But before that patching the ISO and UDF filesystems would have identical content, except for the longname and mixed-case capacity of the UDF filesystem. (But IsoBuster normally only shows the deeper content for one filesystem at a time. You have to 'click' the UDF/ISO branches to switch between them.)

The actually SNES Station files are stored in the ISO and >>> portions of the disc. In the DVDVIDEO portion, there are the typical VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS folders. The audio folder is empty, but the video folder has 2 files. They are VIDEO_TS.IFO and VIDEO_TS.bup. The BUP, appears to be a backup, but the IFO is unreadable in any of the IFO file viewers that I've used.

This is all as intended for ESR-patched discs. The only purpose of the dummy video stuff is to trick the PS2 mechacon into allowing sector reads, and we want the amount of trick data minimized, so it can be added to any game/homebrew image without fail.

Can anyone give me info on how this image file could have been created? Perhaps point me in the direction of the right software to use? I have Isobuster, Nero, MagicIso and I'm just plain stuck. Any help is appreciated!

IsoBuster is not intended to create Iso files, but mainly to analyze and extract stuff from them. Nero can already do the job, as you know, since that's what you did. As for MagicIso and other tools, I'm not really sure since I never use them.

But I do know that the majority of them are completely unable to correctly analyze the content of a disc image after ESR-patching. That is because most of them assume that the content of UDF and ISO filesystems will always match, which is never the case after ESR-patching.

But preparing a disc for subsequent patching is another matter, and several tools should be able to do that right. I've successfully done it with ImgBurn, for example.

The critical bit, regardless of what program you use, is that you must set it up to create a UDF+ISO filesystem combo. Otherwise the disc will not be patchable for ESR.

Best regards: dlanor

User Tag List

Thread: How to run homebrew ELF files from CD/DVD with FMCB?

Tweet

LinkBack

Thread Tools

Display


	Would you like to get all the new info from PSX-Scene in your email each day? Subscribe to our Daily Digest! Want to learn more about the team keeping you up to date with the latest scene news? Read about them now! Check out our Developer bios, too!