Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

HxC Floppy Emulator on IBM PC and compatible support
keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

md5sum is identical, so I'm assuming nothing was actually written to the disks...

Jeff
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 2:08 am
md5sum is identical, so I'm assuming nothing was actually written to the disks...
Very very odd... In worst case in blind mode case this should corrupt the image... "Nothing changed" is almost impossible unless the machine doesn't write anything...
Do you see "WA" on the second line on the gotek lcd when you are writing to the disk ?
Anything else strange on the screen ? (a "WES0" or something similar at the end of the second line ?)

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

I wondered what that line meant. I only ever see RA on the screen. When I expect it to be saving it still shows RA.

In Telengard I can create a char, die, return to main screen, create new char, all without seeing RA on the lcd, but the moment I try to save I see RA and then a PROGRAM ERROR 6 and crash to basic.

While in BASIC I can SAVE to a test file and RA is still only thing shown on screen, and while no error is generated LOAD TEST reports file not found.

Possibly you are still reading when you are trying to write? I have tested saving a simple basic app via physical floppy and it seems to work fine.

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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 8:16 am
I wondered what that line meant. I only ever see RA on the screen. When I expect it to be saving it still shows RA.
RA : "Read drive A" -> The drive selection signal is asserted by the machine, the emulator is streaming the read pulses (data).
WA: "Write drive A" -> The drive selection signal is asserted and the write gate signal signal is asserted by the machine, the emulator is capturing the write pulses (data) .

Can you try to move or add a jumper to the "MO" position jumper ? (ideally put jumpers on S0 and MO).

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

My floppy is jumpered as B: so is M0 and S1 OK? It didn't change the behaviour. Everything is RA.

The Trackstar uses a passive in-line floppy adapter that connects to the trackstar via a 10-pin Apple floppy disk compatible cable. Let me see if I can figure out which ten floppy lines are connected, maybe that can give you some insight.

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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 2:43 pm
My floppy is jumpered as B: so is M0 and S1 OK? It didn't change the behaviour. Everything is RA.

The Trackstar uses a passive in-line floppy adapter that connects to the trackstar via a 10-pin Apple floppy disk compatible cable. Let me see if I can figure out which ten floppy lines are connected, maybe that can give you some insight.
Is the gotek alone on the floppy bus or not ?
I think i need some pictures to show me how the whole thing is connected.
Anyway the write gate signal is the pin/wire 24 on the gotek floppy connector.

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

Image
https://imgur.com/b12z63S
Here's the adapter.
Assuming I numbered these properly:

Pins 2 - 8 on the Trackstar side are ground.
The card apparantly interrupts pins 22 and 24 in the floppy drive datapath; incoming signals are passed to the Trackstar and then from Trackstar back to the floppy. I assume it simply passes normal floppy writes though from the PC side, but blocks that data and inserts special apple-compatible signals when the Trackstar itself assumes control of the drive.

It also has a connection to the READ data line, which is 30 on the card-edge connector.

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

I need to verify I have set up the device correctly. I've configured the gotek as floppy drive b; maybe it's sending drive select to A but B is receiving motor signal or something odd like that. I"ll pull everything out of the floppy path and simply run with gotek as A: and reconfigure the trackstar and see what happens.

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

OK looks like I was part of the problem. I reset all the cables and am booting with just Gotek as drive A, and I'm seeing WA when saving games. Some other things have popped up, like it no longer recognizes Magic Candle disk 4 and Telengard reports an "illegal version character" when loading after saving, but it's a step. I'll gather some images for you and maybe we can figure out what's going on now...
Attachments
telengard.zip
(121.92 KiB) Downloaded 215 times

Jeff
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 5:33 pm
OK looks like I was part of the problem. I reset all the cables and am booting with just Gotek as drive A, and I'm seeing WA when saving games. Some other things have popped up, like it no longer recognizes Magic Candle disk 4 and Telengard reports an "illegal version character" when loading after saving, but it's a step. I'll gather some images for you and maybe we can figure out what's going on now...
Thanks yes this is better. I see now the modified sectors. Still a capture issue, i am checking this. Shouldn't be long now. :)

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

Great job, I really appreciate it Jeff!

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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 6:57 pm
Great job, I really appreciate it Jeff!
Ok i see the difference, but right now i really don't understand why this happen at this place.
This is always the same bit shifted at the exact same place in the data sector sync word. Expect this, all the data part are valid (i can "fix" the recorded data by shifting this bit for all recorded sectors).
Have you an oscilloscope ?
Is there a schematic of the Trackstar ?

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

Sorry, I do not have an oscilliscope and I have not seen a Trackstar 128 schematic, but I will look for one.

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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by Jeff »

keenerb wrote:
Tue May 05, 2020 8:00 pm
Sorry, I do not have an oscilliscope and I have not seen a Trackstar 128 schematic, but I will look for one.
Can you retry with the attached firmware ?
HxCUSBFE.zip
(85.67 KiB) Downloaded 184 times
(share the before/after files again).

keenerb
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Re: Does GoTek support copy-protected HFE images?

Post by keenerb »

Same error, illegal version character in Telengard.

Firmware version updates to .2a after the flash.
Attachments
telengard_take_2.zip
(122.25 KiB) Downloaded 185 times

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