DreamCast Console - Page 3

Backup images..Learn the true facts

History

Many people wondered when a group would release DC backup images. We have already  covered the protection scene of the DreamCast console. However this month (June2000) the Datel's DreamShark started selling around the world. In the same time the underground scene released the disc called "Datel Demo CDX". With that disc you could play imported games to all DreamCast versions (Japan to UK,US). However that CDX bootdisk was not able to play backup images...

The Utopia group released on 22/6/2000 the first DreamCast backup image and the first DreamCast Bootdisk which was able to play backups and imported games.

Sega after some time decided to respond:
"...The company now acknowledges, however, that there was a "loophole" in the original hardware and software anti-piracy protections. That has been fixed in new Sega-produced games, and the new development tools have been given to outside game companies. "As far as we're concerned, this is an issue that is no longer the case," said Charles Bellfield, director of communication for Sega. "We have made changes to our tool set to make sure it's no longer possible.".." Oops.. Loophole? Yes..Read below for more info ;)

I heard that the Utopia Boot Disc is nothing else but a *hacked* copy of Sega's Boot Disc! Is this true?

There is a so-called Sega Confidential Boot Disc, which used from games journalists in order to play Preview versions of Dreamcast games! It is rumoured that in order to get it you need to sign up and in case the disc gets lost you have to pay LOT of $ to the Sega Enterprises. Those preview versions are on golden GD-ROMs, not like normal CD-Rs some. Also there are "white" GD-ROMs are just pre-manufactured store-versions, which Sega sends out editors/staff writers to have a look at the game some weeks before it hit stores in case they didn't got a Sega Boot CD.

The truth is that unreleased games are on GD-Rs, not CD-Rs. GD-Rs, although they are GD-ROMs; do not have the copy protection data of the Dreamcast. In order to boot them, you insert a special Sega GD-ROM disk. This disk doesn't appear to do anything when you try to run it. However, simply by inserting this disk, the Dreamcast protection system is disabled. For the remainder of the time the system is on, GD-Rs are seen as valid GD-ROMs.

Since the boot disk simply disables the GD-ROM protection system, it can't boot games from CD-ROM. Utopia clearly did not copy Sega's boot disk. Give credit where it is due.

What is that GameShark CDX image about?

It works in a non modded (the DC is actually booting the CDR!) Dreamcast. It includes several cheat codes for using it with DC GameShark (cheats won't function without hardware) but also can be used as a free modchip since you can boot import games with this CD!

How the GameShark CDX boot-disc works?

After reading the EXE from the CD, the GD-ROM drive disables itself completely. The GameShark CD does a fake reset so that the GD-ROM re-enables itself. However, because it is software (IE, the system ROM) that is re-enabling the GD-ROM, there is no reason that a software program could not copy this technique to re-enable the GD-ROM. The reason the CDX can run imports is because it has control of the DC system!! There is a bit of CDX code that's "hanging around" to do the hacks. This CDX code also attacks the ROM's import lockout.

How the Utopia BootDisk work? Is it the same as the GameShark CDX bootdisc?

The reason that both BootDisks (Utopia and CDX versions) works, is because the Dreamcast does not prevent the reading of disks which do not pass protection. Even both bootdiscs work the same way the Utopia BootDisc does more than the CDX one.. Utopia figured something out that Datel didn't.

UTP knows how to re-enable the GD-ROM drive after a Mode2 boot. The main secret of the boot disk, is how it has to be formatted. There is a back door in the system ROM where specially formatted mode 2 disks can be booted. The fact that the boot disk can be burned with any burner is because of a back door in the DC ROM. If there were no way for normal CD-ROMs to boot, you could *STILL* make boot CDs out of GD-ROMs, even though they would have to be silvers.

The boot disc contains 2 tracks. The first track contains whatever info we want (maybe even nothing) and can be formatted to any mode we want. However the second track contains the file system of the DC and has to be mode2 formatted else the bootdisc will fail! There are 2 possible ways to make this happen:
1. put an audio track in the first session, and put the mode 2 data track in its own second session
2. put 2 data tracks in the first session

Why the Utopia BootDisk is needed?

You need it in order to be able to play DC backup images and imported games.

How can I make my own DC backup images?

Here comes the bad news guys..You cannot! Why?

1) As we have described no consumer CD-Rom/CDR-W/DVD-Rom drive can read the DC CDs.
2) Even there were some possibility to read the DC CD the image would be up to 1.2GB big (122min)! Again you cannot fit that huge image in any available media. If you think about TraxData's 99min media you can also forget it since the DC images are 122min long. However the most recent news about Sony and Philips 1.3GB CD format maybe change that.

Come on..If I cannot do it how the Utopia and Kalisto groups can release DC backup images?

Well..From what you can imagine, they must have something that most people don't have. Special hardware! What this special hardware can be?

1) CDRInfo viewers must remember the Hitmen's modified DreamCast device. The HitMent groups managed after several months of hard work to reverse engineer the DreamCast console. They also managed to make the first DreamCast demo available! With this device they could also hook the modified DreamCast to the PC and extract the DC image. Of course as we have said even you extract the image you cannot fit it in a normal CD media.

2) Long long time ago CDRInfo viewers must remember some rumor about a hacked firmware (for Yamaha 400t) which allowed the copy of PSX images without the need of modchips. Let's make up a second story here..If the normal CD-Roms cannot read the GD CD would someone make/hack a firmware with it could read such CDs? The answer is yes. If someone had the knowledge of programming firmware, he could make such firmware..

Keep in mind that the firmware is the most vital part of a CD-Rom/CDR-W/DVD-Rom drive since many times we see the same drive with a firmware update transform it's performance. There are few people in the whole world that can program firmware, so I wouldn't expect this info to be true..Again if you could read the image there is no way to fit the 1.2GB image in normal CDs.

3) How about using another console for reading GD CDs? Yes you heard right..Most console CD-Rom don't have the limitations which normal consumers drives have. A possible console to use it the Sony Playstation 1(aka PSX)! Maybe we could also use the Sega Saturn or Sony Playstation 2(PS2).

PSX can read GD-ROMs, but only up to 99:59:74min. There seems to be some bug in the firmware that prevents it from going into A0:00:00 and beyond (A0 = 100min). So we see again that we cannot reach the 122min :(..Also the PSX cannot do digital audio extraction (DAE). If this limitation wasn't there, you could pass the data to PC with a PSX comma link cable at raw format.

4) How about connecting the DreamCast to PC with the proper cable? Yes this also could help reading GD CDs. There is such cable and you can read more about this in here. Keep in mind that even you make this cable you need the proper software in order to control the DreamCast console (either from PC or a special BootDisc).

From what you have told us above there isn't any possible way to backup DreamCast CDs! Again how the Utopia and Kalisto group made it?

Relax..We haven't finished yet

As we said before even someone could read the DC image there is no avaiable media that could fit the 1.2GB (122min) image! So what did both groups managed? To reconstruct the file system (TOC) of the DreamCast console in order to reduce the original image to the one who could fit to normal (74 or 80min) CDs. This is a very difficult task to do but as the result seems they have made it happen. That is an additional reason you need the Utopia BootDisc so that the modified TOC loaded before the backup image.. There isn't any generic way to do it and every game needs a special "care".

Are there any problems with the backup images which already have need released?

Yes..Kalisto's first release seems to work only in US DC version and fails in both EU and Japan drives. This has beed fixed in the next releases. Also the Utopia boot disc seems to crashes when trying to boot an imported Windows CE game with it. Let's hope this will be fixed soon!

Let's sum up what you have learned so far:

1) There's a protection that prevents copied GD-ROMs from booting
2) It seems that "Sega" logo that you can see is part of the protection.
3) Unlike PSX and other consoles, the GD-ROM of the DC does not prevent the reading of ordinary CDs
4) Software on the DC can read normal CD-ROMs if they want to. This is how bleemcast will read PSX CDs
5) There is no way that normal CDRoms can read GD CDs.
6) All DC backup images came out from combing special hardware, resizing the original image and rebuilding the TOC of the DC backup CD.

More info coming soon...