Choosing a device¶
YAOPL can load games from several kinds of devices, and you can use more than one at a time: each has its own page in the game list.
| Device | Needs | Good for | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| USB drive | Nothing extra | Getting started; any PS2 | The PS2's USB 1.1 is slow: some games stutter in videos or loading |
| MX4SIO | An SD card adapter in a memory card slot | Faster than USB, small | Takes a memory card slot |
| iLink | An iLink (FireWire) drive and an early PS2 with an iLink port | Early fat models | Only models with an iLink port |
| Internal HDD | An HDD in the expansion bay (fat PS2 with a network adapter, or an HDD adapter) | The fastest, most compatible way | Fat PS2 or expansion-bay adapter |
| SMB share | A network adapter and a PC or NAS on the LAN | Keeping games on a PC | SMBv1 only; slower than an HDD |
| UDPBD | A network adapter, a PC running a UDPBD server | Faster than SMB, all YAOPL features | New in YAOPL; SMB is off while it runs |
| MMCE | SD2PSX, MemCard PRO 2 or PSXMemCard Gen2 | Games and memory cards on one card | New in YAOPL; no VMC, no split games |
Every device holds games the same way, in the folders CD and DVD (see Adding games), except
the APA-formatted internal HDD, which holds them as HDL partitions.
Turning a device on¶
In Settings each kind of device has a Start Mode:
- Off: the device is not used and its page is hidden.
- Manual: the page is there, and the device starts when you press confirm on it.
- Auto: the device starts when YAOPL starts.
USB, MX4SIO, iLink, an exFAT HDD and UDPBD share BDM Start Mode ("block device manager"); choose which of them to use under BDM Devices. The SMB share is ETH Start Mode, the APA HDD HDD (APA) Start Mode, apps Applications Start Mode, and MMCE has its own MMCE Settings. Choose Save Changes in the main menu to keep the choice.
Folders on a device¶
When a device starts, YAOPL creates the folders it uses if they are missing: CD, DVD, CFG, VMC, ART,
THM, LNG, CHT and APPS (no CD and DVD on the APA HDD). A prefix path in Settings or MMCE Settings
moves them all into a folder of your choice on that device. See Folders.