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Setup Storage Reference Archive

USB Setup

USB mass-storage POPStarter workflows for OPL Apps, OPL DB/PS1 page, wLE_kHn, POPSLoader, Hugopocked fixes, and BDM Assault exFAT.

USB is the easiest path, not the fastest path#

The local notes say these USB structures were confirmed working across OPL Daily/Tenth, Grimdoomer, official 1.1.0, and official 1.2.0 beta style workflows. USB remains limited by the PS2 USB bus and by fragmentation, so do not use USB stutter as proof that a game is incompatible until HDD or SMB has been considered.

OPL Apps page: per-game renamed ELF#

This workflow creates one app entry per PS1 game. The renamed ELF launches POPStarter; the VCD and support folder live under mass:/POPS/.

mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade.VCD
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/CHEATS.TXT
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/SLOT0.VMC
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/SLOT1.VMC
mass:/POPS/POPS_IOX.PAK
mass:/APPS/PS1_Soul Blade/XX.SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade.ELF
mass:/APPS/PS1_Soul Blade/title.cfg
title=[PS1] Soul Blade
boot=XX.SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade.ELF

The boot= value is only the ELF filename, not the full path. The file must be saved as title.cfg, not title.cfg.txt.

OPL DB / Tenth PS1 page#

This is a modern OPL/fork workflow. It avoids per-game APPS folders by keeping POPSTARTER.ELF directly in mass:/POPS/ with the VCDs.

mass:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade.VCD
mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/
mass:/POPS/POPS_IOX.PAK

Label this as OPL DB/PS1-page behavior. Older original POPStarter docs will not necessarily describe it because the frontend behavior came later.

wLE_kHn VCD launcher#

wLE_kHn is useful when you want to browse VCDs instead of creating one renamed ELF per game. The raw notes recommend omitting game IDs from VCD filenames for a cleaner wLE_kHn list.

mass:/POPS/POPS_IOX.PAK
mass:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF
mass:/POPS/Soul Blade.VCD
mass:/POPS/Soul Blade/
mass:/APPS/APP_wLE_kHn_20200810/wLE_kHn_20200810.ELF
mass:/APPS/APP_wLE_kHn_20200810/title.cfg
title=wLE_kHn_20200810 VCD Launcher
boot=wLE_kHn_20200810.ELF

POPSLoader app on USB#

POPSLoader is a separate launcher by El_isra, not original POPStarter core behavior. Its POPSLDR folder must stay beside POPSLOADER.ELF.

mass:/POPS/POPS_IOX.PAK
mass:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF
mass:/POPS/Soul Blade.VCD
mass:/POPS/Soul Blade/
mass:/APPS/PS1_POPSLDR/POPSLOADER.ELF
mass:/APPS/PS1_POPSLDR/POPSLDR/
mass:/APPS/PS1_POPSLDR/title.cfg
title=[PS1] !POPSLOADER
boot=POPSLOADER.ELF

POPS0 through POPS9 split folders#

Original POPStarter can scan mass:/POPS and then mass:/POPS0 through mass:/POPS9. Use this to split large USB libraries, but do not assume every support file is inherited from the main folder.

mass:/POPS/POPS_IOX.PAK
mass:/POPS/IGR_BG.TM2
mass:/POPS0/Crash Bandicoot.VCD
mass:/POPS0/Crash Bandicoot/CHEATS.TXT
mass:/POPS1/Soul Blade.VCD
mass:/POPS1/Soul Blade/CHEATS.TXT

POPS_IOX.PAK and IGR texture files stay in the main POPS folder. Handler or patch files such as BIOS.BIN, PATCH_#.BIN, TROJAN_#.BIN, and VMCDIR.TXT must be copied into the specific POPS# folder that needs them.

Hugopocked fixes on USB#

Place game-specific fixes in the folder matching the VCD basename. If the VCD is 123.VCD, the support folder is mass:/POPS/123/. If the VCD is SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade.VCD, the support folder is mass:/POPS/SLUS_002.40.Soul Blade/.

USB exFAT with BDM Assault#

For exFAT USB, use BDM Assault as driver substitution. The two BDM modules are renamed into the names POPStarter expects:

bdm_assault.irx -> mc?:/POPSTARTER/usbd.irx
usbd_bd_assault.irx -> mc?:/POPSTARTER/usbhdfsd.irx

FreeMcBoot workflows may also use mc?:/SYS-CONF/USBD.IRX and mc?:/SYS-CONF/USBHDFSD.IRX, but that is a separate placement from POPStarter's own memory-card folder.