The PS2 community has almost died completely, but SP193 and Bat Rastard are determined to keep things moving. Open PS2 Loader 0.9.2 works just as well as it used to when loading all of your favorite games. It can work through HDD, USB, and even SMB transfer protocol should you have the means to accomplish that. There are tons of under the hood changes to make the suite compatible with more hardware, and many of the previous version's error messages have been made far more understandable to the casual user. Check out the full release notes below!

Introduction
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Open PS2 Loader (OPL) is a 100% Open source game and application loader for
the PS2 and PS3 units. It now supports *.ISO images on HDD, Ethernet SMB
shares, and USB while also maintaining compatibility with USB Advance/Extreme
format. It's now the most compatible homebrew loader and it should work
without ps2load or change DNASXXX.IMG tricks.

OPL is also developed continuously - anyone can contribute improvements to
the project due to its open source nature.

For updated compatibility lists, visit the Open PS2 Loader forum at:

http://www.psx-scene.com/

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How to use
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OPL uses the same directory tree structure across HDD, SMB, and
USB modes ...

--- "CD" (for games on CD media - i.e. blue-bottom discs)
--- "DVD (for DVD5 images; DVD9 images on USB must be split)
--- "VMC" (for 8MB Virtual Memory Card images)
--- "CFG" (for saving per-game configuation files)
--- "ART" (for box and disc art images)
--- "THM" (for themes support)

---
USB
---
Game files on USB must be perfectly defragmented either file by file or
by whole drive, and Dual Layer DVD9 images must be split to avoid the 4GB
limitations of the FAT32 file system. We recommend Power Defragmenter
for best defragging results, and our own comman line tool iso2usbld to
convert or split games into USB Advance/Extreme format ...

RejZoR - Power Defragmenter 3.0 released!

Other utilities are: USBUtil 2.0, USB Extreme installer or USB Insane.

---
SMB
---
For loading games by SMB protocol you need to share a folder (ex: PS2SMB)
on the host machine or NAS device and make sure that it has full read and
write permissions. USB Advance/Extreme format is optional - *.ISO images
are supported using the folder structure above with the added bonus that
DVD9 images don't have to be split if your SMB device uses the NTFS or
EXT3/4 file system.

----
HDD
----
For PS2, 48-bit LBA internal HDDs up to 1TB are supported. They have to be
formatted with either WINHIIP or uLaunch. From there, use uLaunch to make a
partition (rec. minumum of 2GB) named "OPL". If OPL detects this partition
at start up, it'll automatically create the above directory structure. Use
it to migrate ART, THEMES, CFGs, VMCs, etc. off your MC or USB stick to the
internal HDD and free up space on those devices.

To launch OPL, you can use any of the existing methods for loading an
executable elf.

On PS3, you need an original SwapMagic 3.6+ or 3.8 disc (at the moment
there aren't any other options). The steps for loading OPL on a PS3 are:

1. Rename OPNPS2LD.ELF to SMBOOT0.ELF
2. Make a folder in root of USB device called SWAPMAGIC and copy
SMBOOT0.ELF to it.
3. Launch SwapMagic in PS3 and press UP+L1 then Open PS2 Loader should
start.

There are 4 forms for launching elfs in SwapMagic.

SMBOOT0.ELF = UP + L1
SMBOOT1.ELF = UP + L2
SMBOOT2.ELF = UP + R1
SMBOOT3.ELF = UP + R2

Some notes for devs
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Open PS2 Loader needs the latest PS2SDK

https://github.com/ps2dev/ps2sdk

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Copyright 2013, Ifcaro & jimmikaelkael
Licenced under Academic Free License version 3.0
Review LICENSE file for further details.

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Changelog

Version 0.9.2

rev672
CORE:

• Merged OPL/OPLGSM codebase
• GSM Core 0.36.R - don't worry; 0.38 will be coming back better than ever!
• GSM Core no longer supports 576p, 1080p, Skip FMVs - this is temporary.
• GSM Core is now IGR and CodeBreaker/PS2rd compatible! (See Note 1)
• GSM no longer included in Childproof builds.
• Unified Makefile builds from single source tree via "GSM=0/1" argument (ala VMC/No VMC)
• Protokernel support now part of PS2SDK toolchain
• The integrated LibFreeType was removed, upgraded, and moved into the PS2SDK
• Upgraded LIBPNG, ATAD, HDPro, and DEV9 Module Code
• Added power-off processing code for older games - they should power off console now.
• Optimzed CDVDMAN and CDVDFSV
• Support for PSX DESR-5x00 and 7x00 units
• Built-in TLB reinitialization mechanism - no more EECORE hooking and patching.
• Modified Mode 7 to "IOP Threading Hack"
• Replaced SMAP driver
• Modified SMSTCPIP
• Ported a version of ETH Mode types from doctorxyz's OPLGSM

GUI:

• New "Show GSM on Main Menu" toggle in "Settings" (GSM Builds Only)
• New "GSM Settings" on Main Menu - easier navigation! (GSM Builds Only)
• Fixed issue with HDLSERV and GSM Settings not showing up immediately.
• Full Ethernet controls - can disable Auto-Negotiation and force a mode.
• Some things were are worded differently as less words carry more freight.
• Removed redundant UDMA modes - PS2 will never handle UDMA 5 and UDMA 6.
• Updated SMB support to give better error messages.
• Network error codes changed slightly - 300 for connection errors, 301 for logon errors, 302 for ECHO isalive test failing, and 303 for share opening errors.

COMPATIBILITY:

• Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix (Gummi Fix)
• Baldar's Gate Series (HDD)
• Champions of Norrath (HDD)
• New Mode 7 fixes stuttering with games such as DDR and Pop'N Music (HDD ONLY!)

NOTE 1 - An IGR from OPLGSM to OPL (and vice versa) has produced BSODs in our initial tests. We're looking into this quirk. In the mean time, consider power-cycling the PS2 before switching between GSM and non-GSM builds, or populate your IGR Path specifically with a GSM-build - our tests show when GSM is enabled and still resident, an IGR directly to a GSM-build rarely produces the BSOD (likewise with Vanilla OPL IGR'ing directly to Vanilla OPL) ...