RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 Hi. I can't get the GameDrive to do the 23.08.0858 update. Downloaded the update following the QR code and have it on the top level of my card. But nothing happens when I turn on my 7800 (PAL). At the moment I'm on 23.07.0363. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 6 minutes ago, RamsesUTL said: Hi. I can't get the GameDrive to do the 23.08.0858 update. Downloaded the update following the QR code and have it on the top level of my card. But nothing happens when I turn on my 7800 (PAL). At the moment I'm on 23.07.0363. Any ideas? Did you press the Start button on your controller when prompted on the 7800 screen? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 When you say follow the QR code, did you get this by pressing START on the MD pad / RESET on the console when prompted? And is the filename on the memory card firmware.upd in the root of the card? You should just need to put the memory card into the cart and turn the console on and it will come up saying it’s updating the firmware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Author Share Posted August 12, 2023 I scanned the QR code after pressing Start, download the firmware under the link with my serial, did not change the name of the file (firmware.upd), it's in the root of my SD card and if I turn on the console nothing special happens. It just starts normal as if no update was there ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 I don’t know what to suggest, as it sounds like you have done all that is needed to update the firmware. Do other files on the memory card show up in the game menu when the cart has booted? Ie. Is the memory card recognised ok? The only other thing I can think is the memory card is not even recognised at all, ie. exFAT formatted or multi-partition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Author Share Posted August 12, 2023 (edited) The card is FAT32 formated, the only other files in root are "7800GD.INI" and "hiscore.ram". Otherwise just folders with my ROMs. I updated to 23.07.0363 after receiving the GameDrive, so it worked once. Is it possible that the download link somehow still points to an older firmware version? What would happen if I put an already installed update on the card? No other files show up in the game menu, just my folders. Edited August 12, 2023 by RamsesUTL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 This may sound daft, but are you sure you are copying the new firmware update file to the memory card? It does sound like the old one is still there. I would right click on the download firmware button and save directly to the memory card and make sure it overwrites the existing file. The download link is different for everyone but the process is the same, and it’s working for others, so I can only think there is something local for your problem rather than server side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 12 minutes ago, RamsesUTL said: I updated to 23.07.0363 after receiving the GameDrive, so it worked once. The cart shipped with this firmware version? Did you update to the firmware which I removed? Otherwise there has only been the one firmware update since it shipped. Hit RESET or SELECT on the console on the game menu (I forget which), what version is currently installed? It will be shown on the info / credits page. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Author Share Posted August 12, 2023 I'm pretty sure it's the new one because the file I copied to the card has todays download date. I even tried a different browser to rule out some kind of cache problem. I'm the first to admit if I'm to stupid for something, but I really have no idea what else to do on my end. I have firmware version 23.07.0363.PAL at the moment. But I might be mistaken that I updated once myself, because I got the Jaguar GameDrive at the same time and updated that definitely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 3 minutes ago, RamsesUTL said: I'm pretty sure it's the new one because the file I copied to the card has todays download date. I even tried a different browser to rule out some kind of cache problem. Yes, this is what I was thinking — browsers have a habit of renaming files if they download with the same name, and you may end up copying the original firmware.upd rather than the latest renamed one. And of course renaming has its own issues, as it’s has to be the original firmware.upd filename. The JagGD and 7800GD do look virtually identical in terms of update, so I can understand not remembering which. What link are you using for the firmware update? I’ll have a look and see what it’s downloading, but it won’t be until Monday. The only thing I can suggest in the meantime is to make sure it’s definitely the right firmware.upd file on the memory card. That’s the only thing I can think could be wrong, and if there was a Jaguar firmware.upd on there instead, I’m not sure what it would do. I think it would say firmware update not recognised, though, rather than just booting without error. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Author Share Posted August 12, 2023 On that site https://www.retrohq.co.uk/FW/DW6CQ1Q4J6VCK thats what I'm downloading https://www.retrohq.co.uk/fw/download/DW6CQ1Q4J6VCK. There is no way that I put everything else than this on the card. All the Jaguar files are archived for at least two weeks now and gone from my computer. I just tried a second computer to be absolutely sure ... Take your time, I'm glad you're looking into this. I never would have thought to get such fast response on a saturday evening anyway 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 One last thought, try a freshly formatted and otherwise empty memory card with the firmware.upd on there. There’s no reason why this should work compared to a card with other files, but it’s worth trying… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 12, 2023 Author Share Posted August 12, 2023 Was worth a try but sadly gained nothing. Unpacked a fresh 32GB card, copied the update to it and started the 7800. Booted to an empty menu, saying "No Files Found". But I noticed that the credits screen does not work now. Nothing happens when I press the reset button with that otherwise empty card. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 14, 2023 Share Posted August 14, 2023 I've just verified and it's returning the correct firmware, so I have no idea at all why yours isn't updating. No-one else has had an issue, so I can only think it's local to your setup, but it doesn't make any sense given the steps you say you've followed. One thing I can suggest to see if it's even finding a file, copy any old file into the root of your memory card and rename it to firmware.upd, boot with this file and it should say "Firmware Update Invalid!". If it doesn't say this, it can't find the file, for whatever reason. If you have ROM's on the card, which it can load, however, I don't see how this is possible. Unless the filename is just somehow wrong. But equally, I'm not sure how it could be... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 14, 2023 Author Share Posted August 14, 2023 (edited) Thanks for checking. I tried it with a renamed PDF but the behaviour was the same. No complaining about the invalid update. In my desperation I also tried to download the update again under Windows (normally a Mac user) and also wrote it to several more cards (I have only different SanDisk MicroSD cards, but they work just fine with everything else for me.). Tested it as well without a connected controller. Result is always the same. It starts with your logo, then shows the "Press START for Firmware Update." line and next thing is the menu. Everything from there seems to work just fine. I have no idea what else to try ... Is 23.07.0363.PAL the firmware the devices shipped with or did I do an update after I got it? I'm not really sure anymore. Got mine from DragonBox here in Germany nearly a month ago. Is there maybe a way to force the update through a program that I could start from the menu? Edited August 14, 2023 by RamsesUTL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 14, 2023 Share Posted August 14, 2023 That was the shipping firmware, so you’ve not updated. Mac’s in general are a problem as they can do lots of weird things with formatting, but if you can see and run ROMs, then it would seem it’s all working fine. If you’re getting no errors, the firmware update portion is simply not finding the update file. I have no explanation for this, unfortunately, without being able to actually examine the memory card. The only thing I can think is somehow the filename is wrong. An extra hidden extension? But then if you had no issues updating the Jaguar cart, then that also makes no sense, as it’s no different. If you want to return it to me along with the memory card, I can take a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 15, 2023 Author Share Posted August 15, 2023 Does the Jaguar GameDrive work in the same way with invalid updates and should produce an error message? I took my Jaguar and tried the card from that GameDrive in the 7800 one. But as before the fresh downloaded 23.08.0858 update is not recognized. I then tried that card in the Jaguar GameDrive and there is also no reaction to the update on startup. It's just loading the menu and I can start my games. If there should be an error message appear then that would support your filename theory. But on the other side, I triple checked everything with that files (no hidden extension, flags or anything) and I had never trouble with filenames before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 15, 2023 Share Posted August 15, 2023 No, the JagGD does not report if the firmware update is not recognised, I just checked, it just drops to the menu. However I've just double checked and downloaded your firmware update from above and tried it on my 7800GD cart and get "Invalid Firmware Update!" (which it is for this cart), and likewise the same error from renaming an a78 file to firmware.upd. The file is not being picked up by the firmware update section of the code and I have no explanation for this other than the file not being found, for whatever reason. The only thing I can suggest to take this any further is to return the cart and memory card to me so I can figure out what is going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 15, 2023 Author Share Posted August 15, 2023 Thanks, I appreciate your offer. I'll try a few more small things (different card brand) and if nothing works I'll look for a way to get the GameDrive to you in the UK. Thinking about customs already gives me nightmares 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamsesUTL Posted August 22, 2023 Author Share Posted August 22, 2023 Today I received an MicroSD card from a different brand, unpacked it, copied the latest firmware and it worked. All my other cards are SanDisk, mostly 32GB Ultra A1 but also one 256GB Extreme A2. They all start just fine into the menu and work with games. That new card is just an PNY 16GB Elite class 10 UHS-I. Is there a chance that the modern SanDisk cards are in some way to fast? Thanks again for all your input and the great GameDrive! If you want to investigate further and have me test something, just let me know. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted August 22, 2023 Share Posted August 22, 2023 Fantastic, glad it's working now! I use SanDisk cards (among others), and they have always worked for me. I'll try getting myself some larger / newer cards to see if there are any issues. Code wise the firmware update and menu should be the same, so I don't see why it should differ, but I will investigate. Thanks for the feedback! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Philsan Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 I had a similar problem too. SanDisk Extreme PLUS 32GB: all perfect but no firmware update SanDisk Ultra 16GB: all perfect including firmware update 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted September 15, 2023 Share Posted September 15, 2023 I've not been able to replicate the problem with any of the regular memory cards I have, including SanDisk Ultra 16GB. I've ordered an Extrene Plus 64GB to try next. Hopefully I will be able to repeat the issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SainT Posted September 26, 2023 Share Posted September 26, 2023 Had a pain trying to format the 64GB card to FAT32 and gave up. I also have a suspicion it was a counterfeit card as it did not arrive in retail packaging and was in a little bag marked as "refurbished". Very sus. So next I ordered a 32GB Ultra card and made sure it was in the retail packaging. This works fine. If anyone would like to send me a memory card (i'll happily pay for it) which does not work I can investigate, currently I cannot find a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrZarniwoop Posted October 8, 2023 Share Posted October 8, 2023 Same issue with Sandisk Extreme Pro 32GB card. Tried Mac, Windows, and Windows SD Card Formatter Tool format. All ROMs load fine, just no firmware update. Don't have another handy card to try but will order some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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