Adding storage to AtariOS

[stirrell]

14 minutes ago, Rockymin said:

Would you need to reinstall the AtariOS or whatever it is that controls the system?  If so, how is that done?

If you had a tool to clone the M.2 drive, you could do that before install. You could also use an OS image to flash the VCS to install AtariOS:

Flashing it is a pretty simple process so I would say that would be a good way to go. I have never gotten into partitioning the internal drive to dual boot but others here have. I personally just use an external USB SSD to run Windows off of.

[Rockymin]

28 minutes ago, stirrell said:

If you had a tool to clone the M.2 drive, you could do that before install. You could also use an OS image to flash the VCS to install AtariOS:

Flashing it is a pretty simple process so I would say that would be a good way to go. I have never gotten into partitioning the internal drive to dual boot but others here have. I personally just use an external USB SSD to run Windows off of.

 

Thanks.  Is the image easily available?  I'm thinking of getting a VCS and want to make it into an all in one classic Atari system so it plays 2600, 8 bit, 5200 and 7800 games.  It looks like you can't just mod the AtariOS on the unit to add stuff for the other systems.

[+Neon Wraith]

24 minutes ago, Rockymin said:

 

Thanks.  Is the image easily available?  I'm thinking of getting a VCS and want to make it into an all in one classic Atari system so it plays 2600, 8 bit, 5200 and 7800 games.  It looks like you can't just mod the AtariOS on the unit to add stuff for the other systems.

You do not need to "clone" the internal drive.  It isn't even removable.  The internal drive is a 32GB eMMC that is soldered to the motherboard and it contains the Atari OS and a minor bit of game storage.

 

If you are just adding storage, there are two options.  The first is just any USB thumb drive that you might have laying around.  It is recommended that it is USB 3.1 or higher to ensure good transfer speeds.  The second is an internal M.2 SATA drive.  Any size will work, just make sure it's SATA and that you get one with enough storage.  This option requires you to open the VCS for installation, which is not difficult as long as you are careful of the antenna wires.  The M.2 option is semi permanent but does make for a much cleaner look in your home theater setup.

 

Good luck with whatever you choose, and if you need any further assistance, you can ping me in these forums.

[Rockymin]

1 minute ago, joeatari1 said:

You do not need to "clone" the internal drive.  It isn't even removable.  The internal drive is a 32GB eMMC that is soldered to the motherboard and it contains the Atari OS and a minor bit of game storage.

 

If you are just adding storage, there are two options.  The first is just any USB thumb drive that you might have laying around.  It is recommended that it is USB 3.1 or higher to ensure good transfer speeds.  The second is an internal M.2 SATA drive.  Any size will work, just make sure it's SATA and that you get one with enough storage.  This option requires you to open the VCS for installation, which is not difficult as long as you are careful of the antenna wires.  The M.2 option is semi permanent but does make for a much cleaner look in your home theater setup.

 

Good luck with whatever you choose, and if you need any further assistance, you can ping me in these forums.

 

So is there a slot for a second internal M.2 drive?  I'm not uncomfortable opening stuff up and tinkering.  I've been doing things like that my whole life and have been working in IT with hardware and software for almost 40 years now.  And does it play other games from added storage natively?  Or do you have to setup retroArch or something?  Thanks again.

[stirrell]

Sorry I was totally wrong. It was so long ago I forgot. The M.2 slot is free so you can plug in a new drive and it will be recognized and the built-in 32 gig works as it did before. I’m an idiot!

 

Listen to @joeatari1 not me.

Edited January 21 by stirrell

[+Neon Wraith]

58 minutes ago, Rockymin said:

 

So is there a slot for a second internal M.2 drive?  I'm not uncomfortable opening stuff up and tinkering.  I've been doing things like that my whole life and have been working in IT with hardware and software for almost 40 years now.  And does it play other games from added storage natively?  Or do you have to setup retroArch or something?  Thanks again.

There is only one M.2 slot and it is open for you to put your own drive in there.  When you install the drive, you will need to format it using the format function under storage settings.  The VCS will then seamlessly use the M.2 drive as additional storage for games purchased on the VCS storefront.  When you purchase new games, you will have the option to chose the games storage location at download (eMMC or M.2).  So it will play games downloaded from the VCS storefront, from the M.2, natively.

 

If you are really into PC gaming, you can partition the drive and install GRUB and Windows or some flavor of Linux and run retroArch or Steam or whatever that way.  For information regarding that I would refer you to the PC Mode parts of this forum.

[Rockymin]

15 minutes ago, zzip said:

The AtariOS is installed to a separate device.  There is an m.2. slot in the VCS where you can plug in (not replace) a SSD (SATA type, not nVME),  AtariOS will still be there, you can either use the new SSD as extended storage,  alternate OSes or partition it and do both.

 

11 minutes ago, zzip said:

In PC mode, the skies the limit,  I have my full 2600, Atari-8bit, Jaguar and MS-DOS collection under PC mode.

 

It is in theory possible to add roms to the 2600 and 7800 emulators in AtariOS, but it's hacky.

 

Thanks.  I just ordered a VCS all in one this morning.  I'm thinking of getting a 512GB SSD and setting 128GB for AtariOS and the rest for Windows and emulators.

[RollOut]

That seems like a good call, @Rockymin. I upgraded my unit with a similar sized SSD, but used the whole thing for Atari OS (I use a separate 3.1 USB drive for PC mode). I have all but a handful of the VCS releases at this point, and I've only used about 100 GB. 

 

[Bitsized]

I have keyboard and mouse.  I installed an M.2 drive.   I continue to getting error messages this time it says "We couldn't create a new partition or locate an existing one. For more information, see the setup log files." I'm not sure what to do next. any advice?

 

UPDATE: I formated the drive within the atari OS and now it says windows can't be installed on the drive (listed as drive 0). and it won't give me the option to format it. 

 

What can I do now?

 

Edited January 28 by Bitsized

[scifidude79]

Windows can be a butt sometimes about installing on existing partitions, especially if they're not in the correct format. I'd suggest you delete Drive 0 Partition 1 and create a new one from within the Windows installer.

[RadiATIon]

On 1/29/2024 at 12:38 AM, Bitsized said:

I have keyboard and mouse.  I installed an M.2 drive.   I continue to getting error messages this time it says "We couldn't create a new partition or locate an existing one. For more information, see the setup log files." I'm not sure what to do next. any advice?

 

UPDATE: I formated the drive within the atari OS and now it says windows can't be installed on the drive (listed as drive 0). and it won't give me the option to format it. 

 

What can I do now?

 

You have to follow this video : https://youtu.be/vbLFlIGg74I?si=wjcnfUqTwYhUsWHw It's in french but you can use the translator tool in YouTube's parameters.