Adventures in PS2 modding. aka How to use a SD card as a hdd.

[Howard_Casto]

Ok, so Thomas hooked me up with a network adapter and I've been getting my ps2 ready for use with free mcboot and a hdd.  Unfortunately things have been slow going.  I managed to install fmb along with a hdd loader image on to an IDE drive, but it kept randomly screwing up and I had to pull the drive and start all over.  I have stacks of old IDE drives lying around, so I tired them all.... getting various issues from each one.  I don't know if it's my USB adapter or what, but anyway I'm done with IDE... too much hassle.  So sata is an option, but I'm guessing in a few years sata will be just as hard to deal with as IDE, so I'm skipping over right to good old sd cards. 

So to do this you buy a 44 pin ide (laptop) 2 sd card adapter off of ebay and then a 44 pin to 40 pin to adapt it up to standard IDE size for the network adapter.  Now if you want to load games onto the SD card it should be as easy as putting it in a sd card reader and doing the proper format right?  Wrong.  You'll run into issues that most people think are only fixable by using a sd card to sata adapter.  I've found a work-around for first time installs... it's goofy but it works. 


First note that if your ps2 is already modded you don't have to do all of this... you can format the "drive" on your ps2 and then just use hdd raw copy to add images on the pc.  This is for people who are starting without free mcbooted memory cards. 


You'll Need a sd card 8gb or larger, Winhiip, HDD Raw Copy, a disc image with the hdd version of free mcboot and hdloader on it, and finally any games you wish to install to the HDD. 

1.  Insert the SD card into your computer and format the card as ntfs. 
2.  Open hdd raw copy... the source should be your free mcboot image, the dest should be the sd card.... yes this is out of order... do it anyway. 
3.  Open winhiip.  Select the sd card as the drive... it'll complain about a missing ps2 boot record so let's fix that.
4.  While still in winhiip, select Utilities/Repair Ps2 Drive.  Start the scan... it'll probably finish instantly so save the changes. 
5.  Now the drive should show up as a proper ps2 drive.... you can now re-open hdd raw copy and add as many game isos as you want. 

If you try to just open winhiip first and format the sd card as normal you'll get various errors because an sd card is removable media and some of the operations that winhiip tries to do aren't allowed on removable media.  So yeah, it's basically a goofy work-around, but it works. 

Since SD cards aren't very big (well the cheap ones aren't) I'll be streaming most of my isos via network share from my computer and any games with stuttering issues or whatever will get ftpd to the ps2.... it's just easier this way. 

I hope this helps some people out.  It's especially useful if you don't want to bother with memory cards and wish to use virtual cards on the hdd as the pc is the only way to format the hard drive and get free mcboot on the ps2.   

[ark_ader]

Why all the hard work Howard, when you just run the games via smb?

[Howard_Casto]

Please read. 

1.  You need a memory card with free mcboot on it to run games via smb.
2.  Not all games will run streamed, many suffer from cutscene stutter and have to be stored locally. 

[ark_ader]

Please read. 

1.  You need a memory card with free mcboot on it to run games via smb.
2.  Not all games will run streamed, many suffer from cutscene stutter and have to be stored locally.

No you are incorrectly quoting the facts there Howard.  We have two models of the PS2.  Slim and Phat.  Slim needs McBoot via memory card or USB, Phat can use McBoot but you can install an image on the HDD (soft mod) and install games to the HDD or stream them via SMB.  You need a good CAT6 and two foot between the router/server for get any reduction in lag.  Install OPL and you are good to go.

Getting lag via SMB, then you need to defrag your drive and make sure you are using fat32.

[Howard_Casto]

*sigh*

I don't know if you can't follow logic or what.  In order to use free mcboot with just a hdd you have to frikkin get free mcboot on the hdd!!!  The only way to do that is by installing a fhb img from the pc onto the hdd you will install in the ps2.  As I stated, yes I will stream *some* games via network share, but that's impossible to do without a soft modded ps2, which, if you don't have free mcboot on a memory card, requires you to install freemcboot on a hdd.  Before you ask, no I'm not burning discs.  This is 2017, and I'm done with optical media.

I also don't know what "facts" you are referring to.  You asked why and I answered.  Also you seem to have trouble comprehending what I'm talking about.  You asked why I don't just load the games via smb and I replied that you need a memory card for that (If you don't use a hdd, that was implied).  You "correct" me by saying that on a phat you can also use a hdd and yes, of course you can.....  I JUST WROTE A TUTORIAL ON HOW TO DO THAT USING A SD FOR A HDD.... WHICH IS THIS VERY THREAD. 

[ark_ader]

*sigh*

I don't know if you can't follow logic or what.  In order to use free mcboot with just a hdd you have to frikkin get free mcboot on the hdd!!!  The only way to do that is by installing a fhb img from the pc onto the hdd you will install in the ps2.  As I stated, yes I will stream *some* games via network share, but that's impossible to do without a soft modded ps2, which, if you don't have free mcboot on a memory card, requires you to install freemcboot on a hdd.  Before you ask, no I'm not burning discs.  This is 2017, and I'm done with optical media.

I also don't know what "facts" you are referring to.  You asked why and I answered.  Also you seem to have trouble comprehending what I'm talking about.  You asked why I don't just load the games via smb and I replied that you need a memory card for that (If you don't use a hdd, that was implied).  You "correct" me by saying that on a phat you can also use a hdd and yes, of course you can.....  I JUST WROTE A TUTORIAL ON HOW TO DO THAT USING A SD FOR A HDD.... WHICH IS THIS VERY THREAD.

OK I'll bite.

Where on your brilliant tut does it say anything about OPL v9?  Do you think OPL is needed?  I think you will find that it does... Maybe you should have someone proof read your tuts.  We software engineers are terrible writers (me included).  I mean I read your tut and spend forever on getting the McBoot on the PS2, then find out there is an old version of OPL and the ---smurf--- doesn't work, do you think I would a bit miffed?  No nothing console related upsets me.  The next guy reading it might.

What is wrong with burning some media?  Last month I had a clear out and I found some old 5.25 and 3.5 disks in two big boxes stuck them in a fire pit added some turps with some lit matches and danced around it for 5 minutes.  Boy doesn't it stink when they start to melt.  I would try it out on some dead HDD, but my with my luck there would be some bitcoins in a wallet I forgot about.   



The kid started to sound like you at the end after your last post.