MD-Pro Flashing Software
More than just flashing!
Written in: Visual Basic 1.0 (DOS), Visual Basic 6.0 (Win32)
Release date: 2009/06/12
Downloads
Binary (DOS)
Source (DOS)
Binary (Win32)
Source (Win32)
With the Tototek MD-Pro you can run ROMs on a real Mega Drive / Genesis system. It has its own programming unit, connecting to a USB port for power and a parallel port for data transfer. The LPT port can only work with "EPP+ECP" or "EPP" mode. It uses own proprietary software for data tranfser. However, this software (called "DreamWriter") is a bit buggy. So I wrote a custom flashing software for DOS (at first) and later made a windows version. Both versions are based on the "ucon64" program. They create an INI file if none exists and will save your settings to that ini file. The DOS Version uses the C:\Temp folder for some temporary data. NOTE: SRAM is N/A in the DOS version, but fully functional in the Windows version.
System requirements:
Any 32-Bit x86 CPU (100MHZ or more for Windows version)
8MB of RAM
VGA graphics card
ECP+EPP or EPP capable LPT port
For DOS version: DOS 3.3 and up
For Windows version: Windows 95/NT3.x and up
The Windows version contains a I/O port driver which allows access to the MD-Pro.
How to use the DOS Version:
The DOS Version's window is rather easy to understand. You navigate through folders and search for the files you want to flash. Those you either double-click or click on the "Add to list" button. In the list will now appear the name of the ROM as it is written in the file header. A Mega Drive ROM always has its ROM name at a special offset in the header. You can now delete the list again, or flash the ROMs. If you flash only one ROM, it will directly start up when you turn on the console. If you have 2 or more (DOS Version allows up to 8), a blue menu will appear first that lets you select the ROM you want to play.
To your right you have the OPTIONS section. You can set a variety of settings that might be helpful with certain ROMs.
FIX UNLICENSED GAMES: Unlicensed games don't have the SEGA copyright information written in their header. That means all Mega Drive/Genesis consoles with the "PRODUCED BY ..." screen won't work with these ROMs. This option fixes that problem by writing this information.
FIX CHECKSUM: A ROM always has a checksum written in its offset. Some manufacturers use a check routine for pirating-prevention purposes, but it can also indicate if the ROM has been modified (eg. a bad dump). This option fixes the checksums of every ROM so that no errors will be happening.
FORCE MD FORMAT: A ROM might not appear as a Mega Drive/Genesis ROM to ucon64. This option forces the correct recognition as Mega Drive/Genesis ROMs.
PAD ROM: Tototek MD-Pro flashcarts have problems reading data from ROMs with sizes not dividable by 8 (I think, don't quote me on this!!!). This option enhances the ROM with zeroes (therefore not affecting the checksum) until the amount of bytes matches these criteria.
LPT ADDRESS: Here you can enter the LPT Port address. In most cases, that value is 0x378 (e.g. as BIOS default).
I HAVE AN MD-PRO [***]: You can either write 64 or 32, depending on what model size you have bought (64/32MBit).
How to use the Windows Version:
To enhance usability, the window is much bigger than in the DOS version, but just as easy to use. You navigate through folders and search for the files you want to flash. Those you either double-click or click on the "Add to list" button. When clicked on a file, the header is read and the ROM name will appear in the small text box below the file selection box. In the ROM list will now appear the name of the ROM as it is written in the file header. A Mega Drive ROM always has its ROM name at a special offset in the header. You can now delete the list, remove a special entry on the list after clicking on itor actually flash the ROMs. If you flash only one ROM, it will directly start up when you put the cartridge in your Mega Drive and turn it on. If you flash more than that (Windows version virtually allows up to 65536, Selection menu on the cartridge is limited to 256), a blue selection menu will appear first when you start your MD.
In the middle you have a few options which, as mentioned before, will be saved in an INI file.
FIX UNLICENSED GAMES: Unlicensed games don't have the SEGA copyright information written in their header. That means all Mega Drive/Genesis consoles with the "PRODUCED BY ..." screen won't work with these ROMs. This option fixes that problem by writing this information.
FIX CHECKSUM: A ROM always has a checksum written in its offset. Some manufacturers use a check routine for pirating-prevention purposes, but it can also indicate if the ROM has been modified (eg. a bad dump). This option fixes the checksums of every ROM so that no errors will be happening.
FORCE MD FORMAT: A ROM might not appear as a Mega Drive/Genesis ROM to ucon64. This option forces the correct recognition as Mega Drive/Genesis ROMs.
PAD ROM: Tototek MD-Pro flashcarts have problems reading data from ROMs with sizes not dividable by 8 (I think, don't quote me on this!!!). This option enhances the ROM with zeroes (therefore not affecting the checksum) until the amount of bytes matches these criteria.
LPT ADDRESS: Here you can enter the LPT Port address. In most cases, that value is 0x378 (e.g. as BIOS default).
MD-PRO XY: Here you can select whether your cartridge has 64 or 32MBit storage capacity.