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https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wopl

The Continuation of Unofficial Open PS2 Loader by @Krahjohlito as wOPL!
https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wopl

emulation hardware homebrew loader open opl playstation playstation2 pops ps1 ps2 unofficial uopl

Last synced: 28 days ago
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The Continuation of Unofficial Open PS2 Loader by @Krahjohlito as wOPL!

Awesome Lists containing this project

README 

          

# Double Unofficial-Open-PS2-Loader



![logo](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wOPL/blob/wOPL-base/gfx/logo.png)



Copyright 2013, Ifcaro & jimmikaelkael


Copyright 2024, KrahJohilto

Copyright 2025-2026 chasebochamp

Copyright 2025-Present, Wolf3s and Ripto


Licensed under Academic Free License version 3.0

Review the LICENSE file for further details.



[![CI](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wOPL/actions/workflows/compilation.yml/badge.svg?branch=wOPL-base)](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wOPL/actions/workflows/compilation.yml)

[![Codacy Badge](https://app.codacy.com/project/badge/Grade/8ee1eccd035c464eb0a985486b3f71bd)](https://app.codacy.com/gh/ps2homebrew/wOPL/dashboard?utm_source=gh&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=&utm_campaign=Badge_grade)

[![Discord](https://img.shields.io/discord/1275875800318476381?style=flat&logo=Discord)](https://tinyurl.com/PS2SPACE)

[![Downloads](https://img.shields.io/github/downloads/ps2homebrew/wOPL/total?style=plastic&logo=playstation&logoColor=blue&label=%7C%20DOUBLE%20UNOFFICIAL%20OPEN%20PS2%20LOADER%20%7C%20TOTAL%20DOWNLOADS%3A&labelColor=%23faf9f6&color=blue)](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wOPL/releases)



## Introduction



Double Unofficial Open PS2 Loader (wOPL) is a 100% Open source game and application loader based on [OPL](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/Open-PS2-Loader) for

the PS2 and PS3 units. This version uses features that at the moment are not merged upstream and unique.



    Changes in wOPL  




v1.0



* Removal of UDPBD since there are not much users using this.

* Add a easter egg when booting on wOPL.

* Code cleanups/fixes and compiler warning fixes.

* Gui improvements.

* Art tar archive support.

* mmce support.

* New theme renamed png files.

* Added daf0x gamestar module.

* Modular pademu, Play your games without selecting modules.

* Disc cover enable.



v1.1



* Added USB option in BDM

* Reworked the mmce option(Suggestion by Hardlevel)

* Enabled sfx/boot sounds by standard

* Fixes on game background thanks to berion

* Implementation of readiness checks during init on atad thanks to mystyq

* Re-added back the game id on list theme(Coverflow it´s not supported).

* Fix main background on models eg. 90000s

* Modularized the art loading unifying art .tar

* Enable by standard the favourites mode

* Added a persistence while the game it´s being selected on favourites



v1.2



* Added Code Inject for games support

* Enable by standard USB on BDM

* Add a name to wOPL folders the actual version being used(Suggestion by Canal do Bis)

* Add neutrino for MMCE

* Readded info about the format of the game or app

* Added back the old background configuration

* Added a hint to hide R3 while is being selected

* Added a lazy tar loader for ART/CFG/CHT thanks to mystyq

* Coverflow improvements thanks to KrahJohlito

* Support grayscale and grayscale+alpha images

* App support to the favourites tab

* Pademu fixes on frontend thanka to krahjohilito

* BDM USB fixes



### ART/CFG/CHT .tar compact support



You can now store your ART/CFG/CHT files using tar archive.

All you need it´s to do it´s pack all the files into a `.tar` file name after the folder like this:



`ART/art.tar`



`CFG/cfg.tar`



`CHT/cht.tar`



### wOPL Easter egg



This easter egg will need to be activated using R1+R2+L1+L2+Start+Select



### Modularized art



You can see game list with both normal art and art.tar



### Code Inject



Image Linker module allows patch files up to 4KiB in size to be linked as the game launches. IMG directory contains the GAMEID.img file the same as PS2RD CHT. This feature can be activated with "Enable Linker" under the game's "Cheat Settings."



The binary format of img file can be discovered in ee_core/src/cheat_api.c LinkImage subroutine.






    Changes in uOPL  




* uOPL uses a slightly older build environment in an attempt to increase stability, more akin to OPL r2049

* Multi USB works without issues (workaround)

* ATA HDD support ala grimdoomers fork

* UDPBD support (as a build variant) ala tihmstar & el_isra forks (untested) - likely needs more work and testers to confirm

* Favourites Menu Page (R3 Toggle's Favorite Marker)

* Optional per-game settings for Neutrino core loading for alternative compatibility on the fly

* Additional Mode 7 ala Neutrino (works with both Neutrino and OPL core)

* Legacy apps paths with `mass:` work

* Two new built in themes `` & ``

* Additional theme options

* Debug builds have the option to send LOGs to a BDM device

* Disable all button added for cheats selection menu

* Cancel pending ART requests at launch (should stop a crash that occurs when traversing the games list quickly and suddenly launching a title)



### Neutrino Support



Neutrino needs to be stored on either `mc0:NEUTRINO/neutrino.elf` or `mc1:NEUTRINO/neutrino.elf` with the usual setup of `config` and `modules` subfolders.


In game settings you will find an option `Loader Core` with the options of `` or `Neutrino`



Supported devices: `USB` `MX4SIO` `HDD (ATA)` `iLink` `UDPBD - untested` `HDD (APA) - untested (seems hit & miss for some games)`



Neutrino does not support:


`ZSO Format` `USBExtreme Format` (Will result in `` core being used instead even if `Neutrino` is selected)


`PADEMU` `GSM` `Cheats` (Will result in `Neutrino` still being used however these features will not be applied because Neutrino uses a diffrent sets of modules than OPL and u-OPL)



Get [Neutrino](https://github.com/rickgaiser/neutrino/releases)



### Additional Theme Options



These are all optional and will use default values if omitted.



| Key                  | Description                                                                                                           |

| ---------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |

| `wsX`                | Sets theme element posX position in widescreen (avoids the need for seperate 4:3 and 16:9 theme cfgs)                 |

| `skip`               | If enabled will skip rendering of StaticImage types if there is no currently selected item                            |

| `reflection`         | If enabled will render a reflection of GameImage or Coverflow types (not recommended for faked perspective/3D images) |

| `plasma_blend_color` | Optional secondary blend colour for plasma (now you can mix bg & blend colour, previously it was only bg & black)     |

| `Coverflow`          | New type will render 3 covers at a time, works with overlays and reflection etc                                       |

| `aligned=2`          | New value for "aligned" to right justify                                                                              |

| `use_settings_bg=1`  | If enabled all menus will display`settings_bg.png` from your theme instead of traditional plasma for the background   |











    Release types  




Double Unofficial Open PS2 Loader bundle included several types of the same wOPL version. These

types come with more or fewer features included.



| Type (can be a combination) | Description                                                                              |

| ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |

| `Release`                   | Regular wOPL release with GSM, IGS, PADEMU, VMC, PS2RD Cheat Engine & Parental Controls. |

| `DTL_T10000`                | wOPL for TOOLs (DevKit PS2)                                                              |

| `IGS`                       | wOPL with InGame Screenshot feature.                                                     |

| `PADEMU`                    | wOPL with Pad Emulation for DS3 & DS4.                                                   |

| `RTL`                       | wOPL with the right to left language support.                                            |






    How to use  




W-OPL uses the following directory tree structure across HDD, SMB, and

USB modes:



| Folder | Description                                                  | Modes       |

| -------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------- |

| `CD`   | for games on CD media - i.e. blue-bottom discs               | USB and SMB |

| `DVD`  | for DVD5 and DVD9 images (if filesystem supports +4gb files) | USB and SMB |

| `VMC`  | for Virtual Memory Card images - from 8MB up to 64MB         | all         |

| `CFG`  | for saving per-game configuration files                      | all         |

| `ART`  | for game art images                                          | all         |

| `THM`  | for themes support                                           | all         |

| `LNG`  | for translation support                                      | all         |

| `CHT`  | for cheats files                                             | all         |



U-OPL will automatically create the above directory structure the first time you launch it and enable your favorite device.



For HDD (APA) users, OPL will read `hdd0:__common/wOPL/conf_hdd.cfg` for the config entry `hdd_partition` to use as your OPL partition.

If not found a config file, a 128Mb `+wOPL` partition will be created. You can edit the config if you wish to use/create a different partition.

All partitions created by OPL will be 128Mb (it is not recommended to enlarge partitions as it will break LBAs, instead remove and recreate manually with uLaunchELF at a larger size if needed).






    USB/MX4SIO/iLink/HDD (ATA)  



Game files should be *ideally* defragmented either file by file or by whole drive.

Games larger than 4GB must be stored on a device formatted with exFAT, or if the device is using FAT32, the USBExtreme format must be used (see OPLUtil or USBUtil programs).

We do **not** recommend using any defrag programs. The best way for defragmenting - copy all files to pc, format USB, copy all files back.

Repeat it once you faced defragmenting problem again.



> NOTE: partial file fragmentation is supported (up to 64 fragments!) since OPL v1.2.0 - rev1893



    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.






    HDD (APA) 




For PS2, 48-bit LBA internal HDDs up to 2TB are supported. HDD should be

formatted with the APA partition scheme. wOPL will create the `+wOPL` partition on the HDD.

To avoid this, you can create a text file at the location `hdd0:__common:pfs:wOPL/conf_hdd.txt`

that contains the preferred partition name (for example `__common`).






    Cheats  




wOPL accepts `.cht` files in PS2RD format. Each cheat file corresponds to a specific game and must be stored in the `CHT` directory on your device.

Cheats are structured as hexadecimal codes, with proper headers as descriptions to identify their function.

You can activate cheats via OPL's graphical interface. Navigate to a games settings, enable cheats and select the desired mode.



### cheat modes



* Auto Select Cheats:

  This mode will enable and apply all cheat codes in your `.cht` file to your game automatically.

* Select Game Cheats:

  When enabled a cheat selection menu will appear when you launch a game. You can navigate the menu and disable undesired cheats for this launch session. `Mastercode`s cannot be disabled as they are required for any other cheats to be applied.






    NBD Server  




wOPL now uses an [NBD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_block_device) server to share the internal hard drive, instead of HDL server.

NBD is [formally documented](https://github.com/NetworkBlockDevice/nbd/blob/master/doc/proto.md) and developed as a collaborative open standard.



The current implementation of the server is based on [lwNBD](https://github.com/bignaux/lwNBD), go there to contribute on the NBD code itself.



The main advantage of using NBD is that the client will expose the drive to your operating system in a similar way as a directly attached drive.

This means that any utility that worked with the drive when it was directly attached should work the same way with NBD.



wOPL currently only supports exporting (sharing out) the PS2's drive.



You can use `hdl-dump`, `pfs-shell`, or even directly edit the disk in a hex editor.



For example, to use `hdl_dump` to install a game to the HDD:



* Connect with your choosen client (OS specific)

* Run `hdl_dump inject_dvd ps2/nbd "Test Game" ./TEST.ISO`

* Disconnect the client.



To use the NBD server in wOPL:



* Grab the latest beta version - go to the [Releases](https://github.com/ps2homebrew/wOPL/releases) section and grab the one at the top.

* Ensure OPL is configured with an IP address (either static or DHCP).

* Open the menu and select "Start NBD server". Once it's ready, it should update the screen to say "NBD Server running..."

* Now you can connect with any of the following NBD clients.



### nbd-client



Supported: Linux, [Windows with WSL and custom kernel](https://github.com/microsoft/WSL/issues/5968)



nbd-client requires nbd kernel support. If it isn't loaded,

`sudo modprobe nbd` will do.



list available export:



```sh

nbd-client -l 192.168.1.45

```



connect:



```sh

nbd-client 192.168.1.45 /dev/nbd1

```



disconnect:



```sh

nbd-client -d /dev/nbd1

```



You'll generally need sudo to run this commands in root or

add your user to the right group usually "disk".



### nbdfuse



Supported: Linux, Windows with WSL2



list available export:



```sh

nbdinfo --list nbd://192.168.1.45

```



connect:



```sh

mkdir ps2

nbdfuse ps2/ nbd://192.168.1.45 &

```



disconnect:



```sh

umount ps2

```



### wnbd



Supported: Windows



[WNBD client](https://cloudbase.it/ceph-for-windows/).

Install, reboot, open elevated (with Administrator rights) [PowerShell](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/scripting/windows-powershell/starting-windows-powershell?view=powershell-7.1#how-to-start-windows-powershell-on-earlier-versions-of-windows)



connect:



```sh

wnbd-client.exe map hdd0 192.168.1.22

```



disconnect:



```sh

wnbd-client.exe unmap hdd0

```



### Mac OS



Not supported.






    ZSO Format  




As of version 1.2.0, compressed ISO files in ZSO format is supported by wOPL.



To handle ZSO files, a python script (ziso.py) is included in the pc folder of this repository.

It requires Python 3 and the LZ4 library:



```sh

pip install lz4

```



To compress an ISO file to ZSO:



```sh

python ziso.py -c 2 "input.iso" "output.zso"

```



To decompress a ZSO back to the original ISO:



```sh

python ziso.py -c 0 "input.zso" "output.iso"

```



You can copy ZSO files to the same folder as your ISOs and they will be detected by wOPL.

To install onto internal HDD, you can use the latest version of HDL-Dump.






    PS3 BC  




Currently, supported only [PS3 Backward Compatible](https://www.psdevwiki.com/ps3/PS2_Compatibility#PS2-Compatibility) (BC) versions. So only [COK-001](https://www.psdevwiki.com/ps3/COK-00x#COK-001) and [COK-002/COK-002W](https://www.psdevwiki.com/ps3/COK-00x#COK-002) boards are supported. USB, SMB, HDD modes are supported.



To run w-OPL, you need an entry point for running PS2 titles. You can use everything (Swapmagic PS2, for example), but custom firmware with the latest Cobra is preferred. Note: only CFW supports HDD mode.






    Some notes for DEVS  




Double Unofficial Open PS2 Loader needs the [**latest PS2SDK**](https://github.com/ps2dev/ps2sdk)



Quick build commands:



```sh

# Direct Makefile build (canonical)

make



# Release package build

make release

```



Optional CMake wrapper (delegates to Makefile targets):



```sh

cmake -S . -B build

cmake --build build

```



Useful CMake targets: `release`, `clean`, `rebuild`, `debug`, `iopcore_debug`, `ingame_debug`.






    Frequent Issues  




### w-OPL Freezes on logo or grey screen



Sometimes w-OPL freezes when loading config files made by older w-OPL builds.



> hold __`START`__ while w-OPL initializes to make it skip the config loading, then, you can save your own settings.

> fixing the issue.



### Game freezes on white screen



> Main game executable could not be found. Either game is fragmented or image is corrupted



### w-OPL does not display anything on boot



> You may have selected a Video Mode which your TV does not support. Hold Triangle and Cross while w-OPL initializes to reset your video mode to "Auto".