CFW and Homebrew Upkeep Reminders

Filed under: Technology, Tutorials/Guides

As much as I love hacking/modding my consoles, I sometimes have a really hard time actually properly using them. This is a HUGE problem when I've let one of my consoles lie dormant for a long time (cough cough my HEN PS3) and all of a sudden I can't remember how to transfer/download games to it, let alone update homebrew software! The following will be collections of notes I've made for my different modded consoles so I can easily get back to using them.

The reason I'm posting this PUBLICLY is because, who knows, maybe it'll help someone else! Some mods are remarkably easy and take little to no effort, so maybe I can give you some ideas :3 Just keep in mind that my setup may differ from yours, so adjust things accordingly.

Dreamcast

  • Utopia Boot disc needs to be used before playing burned/region-locked discs
  • .cdi files are the disc images for Dreamcast (use Discjuggler and CD-R!!)

Playstation 1

  • Use tonyhax memory card (slot 2) to play burned/region-locked discs
    1. Boot up PS1 with nothing in disc tray
    2. Once tonyhax loads, you can insert the disc!
  • .bin files are the disc images for PS1 (use Discjuggler and CD-R!!)

PS2

!!IMPORTANT!! Only download PS2 games on the Thinkpad, because it's already set up with all the correct tools & ethernet configuration!

(Note: the above is just for me it doesn't matter what computer YOU choose to use dear reader...)

  • Process before installing games to HDD:
    1. Move game file to OPL oflder (DVD for .iso, CD for .bin/.cue)
    2. Open OPL Manager
    3. Get title from DB
    4. Try to update file name
    5. Batch Actions > ART Download -> Start
    6. Copy ART folder to a USB
    7. Overwrite ART folder in the OPL directory using uLaunchELF
  • If PS2 HDD is connected to PC: Use HDL Batch Installer
  • If connecting to HDD with ethernet: HDL Game Installer (PC Client)
  • .iso files are the disc images for PS2 (use ImgBurn and DVD-R!!)
  • .bin files need to be converted to .iso, which can be done in OPL Manager

PS3

  • Plain ol CFW lets you play burned/region-locked discs
    • Applies to PS1/PS2 discs as well as long as it's the older PS3 model
    • Also fuck HEN, all my homies hate HEN. We use EvilNAT Cobra out here
  • Stupid abbreviation guide:
    • CEX: consumer firmware, basically for consoles you'd buy in-store
    • DEX: developer/debug firmware (don't need this if you just wanna play games)
    • PEX: fancy evilNAT firmware that installs over CEX and allows you to swap between CEX/DEX
    • D-PEX: same as PEX but installs over DEX instead
    • REX: basically PEX but for use with Rebug CFW
    • D-REX: basically D-PEX but for use with Rebug CFW