ESR idea: mount image over network

Lenbok · #1 07-08-2008, 12:09 PM

Hi there, I have no idea of the feasibility of this, as I am just starting to get into ps2 homebrew etc. I have read that SMS can play media from smb/cifs fileshares. Would it somehow be possible to get ESR to launch backups that are hosted via a fileshare?

I have a modded PSTwo that has been through two lasers already, and have been thinking about setting up a USB HDD to play backups from. Apparently the USB 1.1 is very slow, so I thought that mounting over LAN could be faster (is PS2 ethernet 10Mbs or 100Mbs?) and more convenient from a management point of view.

Possible / impossible?

dlanor · #2 07-08-2008, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lenbok

Hi there, I have no idea of the feasibility of this, as I am just starting to get into ps2 homebrew etc. I have read that SMS can play media from smb/cifs fileshares. Would it somehow be possible to get ESR to launch backups that are hosted via a fileshare?

I have a modded PSTwo that has been through two lasers already, and have been thinking about setting up a USB HDD to play backups from. Apparently the USB 1.1 is very slow, so I thought that mounting over LAN could be faster (is PS2 ethernet 10Mbs or 100Mbs?) and more convenient from a management point of view.

Possible / impossible?

I think it would be possible for ffgriever (or others with similar skills) to design a game loader capable of using any storage medium of sufficient capacity and speed (or close to it like USB).

But it would no longer be the ESR program that we now use. And the basic method it uses, of slightly patching the existing CDVD driver, would not work for other devices. With those devices it would become necessary to implement a kind of emulating CDVD driver, so that the games' attempts to access CDVD discs are translated into accesses on mounted ISO files on other media.

So yes, it is possible, but it would not have much in common with the current ESR design.

Best regards: dlanor

d3adliner · #3 07-08-2008, 07:08 PM

Something like this would be heaven for those with a slim ps2, that is, if it was faster and had far greater compatibility than usbadvance/extreme.

_ZedHqX4_ · #4 07-08-2008, 07:24 PM

i dont think its possible, i mean, on the xbox it cant be done, and as far as i know its easier to code for it. But again. who knows? i never thought that i'd be able to play my backups on the ps2 without having to do swap or with HDLoader

TnA · #5 07-08-2008, 07:34 PM

I also think, that it is even possible.

I have seen too many sources in past 2 years, since hd-demolisher-project starts, that I could belive it is NOT possible.
Think, it'll be possible, to create a loader with:

- VMC on any device (fixes done?)
- Booting Games (let it be PS2, or PS1) from USB, HD, Host,...
- Loading patched discs from DVD to all devices (unnecessary, if it would loaded from USB and HOST, with HIGH compatibility.).
- Cheatmodule
- "On-the-fly" patches for:
-->various features, locked to some regions (HD-Install).
-->DVD-DL and else, like ESR could (also the Media-Check-Patch [without the need of ELF-CD2DVD-Patching]).
-->...

- ...

...think Homebrew can beat ToxicOS.

suloku · #6 07-08-2008, 07:42 PM

One reason it's not suitable for ps2 (but of course possible): speed.

It just sucks, hdldump already reaches maximun speed, I don't think it's enough for many ps2 games.

TnA · #7 07-08-2008, 07:44 PM

Hm,... Fastest Network-Bandwith afaik is 3.5MB/s.
Fast enough for PS1-Games and even faster than USB for PS2-Games.

How big is the bandwith with:

PS1-CD, PS2-CD, PS2-DVD, normally?

THX i.a.

unclebob69 · #8 07-08-2008, 09:17 PM

Quote:

One reason it's not suitable for ps2 (but of course possible): speed.

It just sucks, hdldump already reaches maximun speed, I don't think it's enough for many ps2 games.

I get 2mb a second using hdldumb server elf and a crossover cable. Which I am sure is way faster than usb 1.1,If someone was able to achieve 2mb a second how good would the compatibilty be over network of loading backups?

PALGamer · #9 07-08-2008, 09:27 PM

from what I read from ffgrievers PS1 Emu for PS2 (not ESR) , that should be able to be PS1 images over netwerk, so that might be possible quite soon ..

ffgriever · #10 07-08-2008, 11:37 PM

For PS1 even the USB speed is just what you actually need (assuming you have fast usb device... because some are slow as hell, making less that 50kB sustained read speed... while others do just fine at 300kB). Network/host is a total overkill for PSX games as you will be able to give the data much faster than it will be able to process it...

TnA · #11 07-08-2008, 11:43 PM

Can someone answer my question, how much is max. read-bandwith, while reading from different (original) disc-types?

-PSX-CD
-PS2-CD
-PS2-DVD.

What is max. possible bandwith (for now), through USB, HOST/..., HDD?

Does some games in your test (like "Resident Evil") stutter, skip or hang in those "loading sequences/-videos" (maybe because of "too fast loading")?

Btw.: @ffgriever: Do you think, it might possible, to cache games (so if we're reloading a level, we don't need to wait?).
Aaaah,... Maybe a waist of RAM.

N1 work, thought (even, if I tested nothing. I trust in your skills and dlanors words.)

MysTiCy · #12 07-08-2008, 11:47 PM

What about straight USB-cable PS2-PC, with computer having some tunneling software so USB can access straight to HDDs, and use that with USBadvance(or whatever is it's name)?

And as Gamecube owner, been using PSO+BBA method, with streaming games from PC throught network, i can say it lags quite alot. Though there is 100MB/s speed available, it can't be used full speed, only about 24MB/s. On higher speeds it loses data(small RAM).
Maybe it would work almost flawlessly on PS2, since it has 32MB? RAM, and GC got only 12MB?. Well, it would work good, if the PS2 HDD would be used as buffer, but then there's no point in whole work

Correct me if i'm wrong

ffgriever · #13 07-08-2008, 11:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TnA

Can someone answer my question, how much is max. read-bandwith, while reading from different (original) disc-types?

-PSX-CD
-PS2-CD
-PS2-DVD.

What is max. possible bandwith (for now), through USB, HOST/..., HDD?

PSX-CD Normal mode (x2) = 300kB/s
PSX-CD Fast mode (x24 was it? or x12? I would have to check)
PS2 CD x24 - 3.6MB (but it's CAV, so it will get to this speed at the very end of the disc)
PS2DVD x4 so it's ~5400kB/s near the end of the disc, theoretically... most of the time you'll be getting speeds ~2MB/s

TnA · #14 07-09-2008, 12:00 AM

So host MAY also give enough bandwith, to play PS2-Games from HOST * ?

* (...with no stuttering movies, etc. Thought PS2-PSS-Files are encoded to max 10.08MBit/s, like MPEG2. So around 1.28MB/s.

)

Peppers · #15 07-09-2008, 12:22 AM

A crazy app that can run games from almost every hole the ps2 has on it with near perfect compatability would be pretty awsome but I have my douts we will see one

. Personaly my preference would still be imporved HDD support.
I wonder what kind of transfer speed the controller ports support?

Zylyx · #16 07-09-2008, 12:54 AM

Theoretically this is all possible, but actual speeds would be variable and depending on how much additional load the network interface puts on the system it might cause some slowdown, instability, or outright crash some games.

Also, as said before by others, you'd need to rewrite the disc reading driver-- if we had HDL source, we'd probably be about 500 miles ahead of where we are, but that's never going to happen.

I don't think there's been any real recent progress on the homebrew rewrite of late-- certainly, there isn't enough to get us to the point we could replace HD reading with a network-based read.

In short: Entirely possible though compatibility is questionable-- but definitely don't expect to see anything like this anytime soon.

ffgriever · #17 07-09-2008, 01:42 AM

HDloader equivalent that would load games using network would have quite low compatibility (the size of modules and IOP memory needed).

When it comes to the PS2 part, it would be easier to do some work on hdloader... I was just trying to fix some games, so I took hdloader core, decrypted it, then removed the EE side core... this had left me two modules and IOP replacement image header (romdir and extinfo, hdloader ee core just copies the modules here when the time comes and full iop replacement image is created this way). Then I have put it along with my ESR EE core. This is enough to make it work with some games it didn't work before. But right now there is no gui... I just hardcode starting sector of partition containing particular game and then recompile. It took quite a lot of time to get it working as it was freezing on me after loading, but now everything works fine. Once I'll have some time, I'll try to code missing gui (just game browsing/running, no installs/renaming/removing) and make a patch for the original hdloader (also the patched ones, there will even be no need to decrypt it, as in patched versions the core is already decrypted, though vast majority of patches will have no effect as I'll be getting rid of them along with all the original hdl EE core and gui).

Peppers · #18 07-09-2008, 02:22 AM

^quite interesting to read.

_ZedHqX4_ · #19 07-09-2008, 02:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ffgriever

HDloader equivalent that would load games using network would have quite low compatibility (the size of modules and IOP memory needed).

When it comes to the PS2 part, it would be easier to do some work on hdloader... I was just trying to fix some games, so I took hdloader core, decrypted it, then removed the EE side core... this had left me two modules and IOP replacement image header (romdir and extinfo, hdloader ee core just copies the modules here when the time comes and full iop replacement image is created this way). Then I have put it along with my ESR EE core. This is enough to make it work with some games it didn't work before. But right now there is no gui... I just hardcode starting sector of partition containing particular game and then recompile. It took quite a lot of time to get it working as it was freezing on me after loading, but now everything works fine. Once I'll have some time, I'll try to code missing gui (just game browsing/running, no installs/renaming/removing) and make a patch for the original hdloader (also the patched ones, there will even be no need to decrypt it, as in patched versions the core is already decrypted, though vast majority of patches will have no effect as I'll be getting rid of them along with all the original hdl EE core and gui).

Wow, i kneel before you, i dont really need it but its great, some games i have dont work with hdloader, but i dont play them too much either. Its just that id prefer to see your work on PS2PSXe, dunno, maybe you could give a beta test to someone from the forum, maybe the post #19 in this thread or something

J/K