need help with dreamcast HDD IDE

[OzOnE]

OK, tried booting from CD-R with Sega BIOS enabled = compatibility much better.

I'm just going to try the custom boot_loader_wsc_bfont.bios, but switching back to the Sega BIOS just after the bootloader shows (as a test).

Do you know when / if DS or the ISO Loader still does the gdrom_activate thing before loading a game from HDD?

I know as well now that I need to burn DC CD-Rs at a lower speed - 24x didn't work at all, but 2x is fine.
So, there really is a difference with CDs burned at a lower speed. I didn't quite believe that for a while.

OzOnE.

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SWAT - I almost got boot_loader_wsc_bfont.bios working...

I simply threw the switch back to the Sega BIOS just after powering on, and it managed to read the HDD OK.

But, it still freezes at the ISO Loader stage (just before the game runs).

If you could make a BIOS which says "switch to stock BIOS" just before the gdrom_activate stage, I could do some testing.

Have you managed to test this BIOS on the real DC yet?

EDIT: I have to get the timing JUST right when changing the switch. It's around 700ms after I power on.
The BIOS fonts are then screwed up, but I can change the switch back to your wsc_bfont BIOS and it gets a bit further.

When I try Sonic 1 in direct mode now, it says "executing at...", then resets back to the boot_loader saying "cannot find IDE MBR" etc.

This is promising though, as it does show we just need a simply way to bypass the Holly lockout.

(btw, for anyone else reading - this isn't an inherent problem with Dreamshell, we're just trying to get the custom BIOS to work. ; )


OzOnE.