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freddiefiasco

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If this is a duplicate thread please point me in the right direction so I can disregard my question:

I am using the Transfergame.exe method to netboot.

I noticed different behavior when netbooting on the NAOMI2 versus the Triforce versus Chihiro.

On the NAOMI2 when a game is loaded using transfergame.exe, the game loads whether you are in attract mode, test menu or in-game. This is what I'm used to doing.

On the Triforce when first booting up the Triforce, the same behavior happens as with the NAOMI2. When loading a different game, I can't get transfergame to load the chosen game into memory. I have to turn the Triforce completely off and re-run transfergame with the new game to load properly.

On the Chihiro when first booting up the Chihiro, the proper behavior is expected. When loading a different game, same issue happens as with the Triforce when re-loading a different game. If I turn off the Chihiro and turn it back on again, the previous game loaded is still in memory and re-loading a game is almost inconvenient. I have to load the new game during the media board initialization screen. If the Chihiro reaches the game load process, transfergame just hangs. If a JVS I/O or other initialization error screen appears, it seems that I can re-load a different game just fine.

My questions are:

1. For Chihiro, is this a abnormal behavior?
2. What's the best way to re-load a new game on the Chihiro if you want to change up games without turning off the console first?
3. For the Chihiro, if the game remains in memory even after powering off, is there something that retains this data such as the battery? I was assuming the Triforce would act the same way but I think any type of data retention on the Triforce is not working the way it should.
 
Your observation is correct and is the expected behavour (on chihiro)

On chihiro 1 (and on Naomi as well I assume), there is a network command that puts the netdimm back into netboot mode. On chihiro 3, this isn't the case anymore.

The network port is used to link the games. Once the game starts, it takes over the network port and it can't be used anymore for netbooting. (It get's a different network address as well)

As you figured out yourself, if you prevent the system from entering a game (like with a JVS error), it will allow the upload of a different game.

The chihiro and triforce mediaboard has a 512MB or 1024MB ram module that keeps it's contents with a lithium battery that is mounted next to the pcb. A game can stay in the memory for a couple of days with that.
Maybe, on your triforce, that battery is dead and due to that the games no longer stay in memory. The battery has 3 wires. One is GND, the other the output voltage. The third is a thermistor used to measure the battery temperature. You should get approx 7.2 - 7.4V between black and red.

If you put the system in test mode, does that allow to upload another game?

Those systems never were designed for frequent game switching.
 
Thanks for confirming!

I will test the battery, I ended up putting my NAOMI2 back in place for the evening and will continue tomorrow.

I did try to load a game during test mode a few different times and the result varied. First attempt, got passed CRC check in transfergame, then it halted. Second attempt, hard reset the console and it got to the media board load screen, then game load (previous game was still in memory) and it hung during the first batch of bytes but the game initialization screen halted. Third time, it loaded just fine but I attempted the load right after the media board load screen.

If this is the intentional behavior, what is the best way to re-load a different game to get the same result each time?
 
I am not using netbooting (for different games), so I am not the best to answer your questions.

There exist a python script to upload games as well. (triforcetools.py)
If you would be able to have the program wait for it's tcp connection, and start the chihiro or triforce next, it would probably always be able to upload it's game. I have no idea how triforcetools.py behaves when it can't establish it's tcp connection. It might just timeout with an error, but maybe that timeout is long enough to start the game board.

The advantage of triforcetools.py is that it's open source. transfergame.exe is not, so it's nearly impossible to tweak.

If your game board becomes pingable at startup, this could be a way to figure out that it's ready for a game upload.

I have no idea how you could reset the game without power cycling it. You could install a separate power switch for the game board supply so that you don't have to power cycle the monitor(s) as well.
 
For me it's kind of hit or miss on Chihiro. Sometimes I can send a new game while another is booted, sometimes I have to hard reboot (no backup battery for me).

Triforce mostly seems to let me load up new games. MK2 seems to reassign my IP address in the test menu on first boot. Not sure what that's about, but I do have working battery backup for it and a hard reboot seems to get my IP back to what it was before.
 
For me it's kind of hit or miss on Chihiro. Sometimes I can send a new game while another is booted, sometimes I have to hard reboot (no backup battery for me).

Triforce mostly seems to let me load up new games. MK2 seems to reassign my IP address in the test menu on first boot. Not sure what that's about, but I do have working battery backup for it and a hard reboot seems to get my IP back to what it was before.
Glad I'm not the only one. I thought I messed up my IP address and realized that it put it back the next time I rebooted.
 
I am not using netbooting (for different games), so I am not the best to answer your questions.

There exist a python script to upload games as well. (triforcetools.py)
If you would be able to have the program wait for it's tcp connection, and start the chihiro or triforce next, it would probably always be able to upload it's game. I have no idea how triforcetools.py behaves when it can't establish it's tcp connection. It might just timeout with an error, but maybe that timeout is long enough to start the game board.

The advantage of triforcetools.py is that it's open source. transfergame.exe is not, so it's nearly impossible to tweak.

If your game board becomes pingable at startup, this could be a way to figure out that it's ready for a game upload.

I have no idea how you could reset the game without power cycling it. You could install a separate power switch for the game board supply so that you don't have to power cycle the monitor(s) as well.
I was afraid of that. It's not a big deal really. I only tried switching between two games mainly for testing a card reader that I have. It turns out that on this specific card reader, I needed to test initialization on two different games and needed to verify that the initialization process can be executed while the console remains on.
 
Is it possible that games that can be linked behave different than games that don't have buildin link options?

On chihiro 1 with a "house of the dead 3" game, I can restart an upload while in game.

On chihiro 3 with OR2 and OR2ST, I can only start an upload shortly after a power cycle.
Once in game, the ip has changed and the system is no longer accessible over the network.

I assumed it was chihiro 1 versus chihiro 3 that made the difference, but maybe it's the fact that OR2 has linking?

Naomi used optical cables for it's linking, so no game needs to take over the network there either.
 
Is it possible that games that can be linked behave different than games that don't have buildin link options?

On chihiro 1 with a "house of the dead 3" game, I can restart an upload while in game.

On chihiro 3 with OR2 and OR2ST, I can only start an upload shortly after a power cycle.
Once in game, the ip has changed and the system is no longer accessible over the network.

I assumed it was chihiro 1 versus chihiro 3 that made the difference, but maybe it's the fact that OR2 has linking?

Naomi used optical cables for it's linking, so no game needs to take over the network there either.
Perhaps. I noticed the behavior on WMMT2 Export and Crazy Taxi High Roller. Both of them would not allow me to load while the game was loaded and in memory.

I don't know of Crazy Taxi High Roller being a networked game but WMMT2 has a link feature like with MKGP2 on the Triforce.
 
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