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[GarlicOS Tips for Windows] My set of GarlicOS tips
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garlic-os-tips.md

Garlic OS Tips

GarlicOS Installation

This is for a single SD card. You can use two SD cards, but I find a single SD card is cheap and easy to manage.

Download RG35XX-MicroSDCardImage.7z.001 and RG35XX-MicroSDCardImage.7z.002

Extract RG35XX-MicroSDCardImage.7z.001 using 7-zip (open the .7z.001 file) to somewhere on your hard drive (not the USB card!).

Use Rufus to write garlic.img to an SD card.

  • Don't use the card that comes with the RG35xx, it's crap. A quality (e.g. SanDisk Extreme SDSQXA1-128G-GN6MA) 128GB card is under $20 USD as of this writing.

Wait until you see "ROMS" partition (contains "BIOS", "CFW" , "Roms") in Explorer.

*Tip: If you don't see that drive (along with the "MISC" drive), open Disk Management, and assign drive letters by right clicking the partitions and choose "Change Drive Letter and Paths...", then "Add...". Once those drives appear, I suggest adding volume labels. Name the small FAT partition (contains a "modules" folder) "MISC" and name the large FAT32 partition (contains "BIOS" folder) "ROMS".

Use DiskGenius to extend "ROMS" (FAT32) partition to as large as it'll go - Windows' "Disk Management" tool doesn't support extending the ROMS volume, unfortunately.

Updating GarlicOS

Download RG35XX-CopyPasteOnTopOfStock.7z.001 and RG35XX-CopyPasteOnTopOfStock.7z.002

Open the .7z.001 file in 7-zip and extract to root of SD card.

Eject SD card and boot.

Tiny Best Set: GO!

A great set! Here's instructions for installing onto a single 128GB SD card.

You can use smaller than a 128GB card by skipping the "64" and "128" files, but 128GB cards are cheap, so why not?

Extract GarlicOS

Download and extract GarlicOS to the SD card, and expand the ROMs partition. See instructions above.

Extract Tiny Best Set: GO!

Download Tiny Best Set: GO ZIP files:

ROMS:

  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-64-games.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-128-games.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-games.zip

Artwork (choose these or "Alternative artwork"):

  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-64-imgs-garlic.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-128-imgs-garlic.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-imgs-garlic.zip

Alternate artwork (my preference):

  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-64-imgs-garlic-3mix.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-expansion-128-imgs-garlic-3mix.zip
  • tiny-best-set-go-imgs-garlic-3mix.zip

Arcade name fixes:

  • tiny-best-set-go-arcade-names-garlic.zip

Extract all downloaded ZIP files to root of "ROMS" SD card partition, overwriting existing files.

Extract Tiny Best Set: GO! Arcade Update

Download Tiny Best Set: GO! Arcade Update ZIP files:

ROMS:

  • tiny-best-set-go-arcade-update-garlic.zip

Artwork (choose this or "Alternative artwork"):

  • tiny-best-set-go-arcade-update-garlic-imgs.zip

Alternative artwork (my preference):

  • tiny-best-set-go-arcade-update-garlic-imgs-3mix.zip

Extract all downloaded ZIP files to root of "ROMS" SD card partition, overwriting existing files.

Insert SD card and boot!

Better System Icons

Great looking system icons. Highly recommended.

Download retro_system_icons.zip

Extract the system folder (contained in the ZIP file inside the "retro_system_icons" folder) to /CFW/skin, overwriting existing files.

Pungent Best Set

If you want to get up and running with a curated set of ROMS with only a 16GB SD card needed, try this.

Insert SD card.

Open "ROMS" drive in Explorer.

Download Pungent Best Set.

Extract to the root of the "ROMS" drive.

Eject SD card and boot.

RetroArch Video Settings

This makes GBx games look much better and improves perf. Not sure why this isn't a default.

Open RetroArch option in GarlicOS.

  • Settings > Video
    • Threaded Video
  • Settings > Video > Scaling
    • Keep Aspect Ratio

Quit RetroArch

Overlays

To enable an overlay for a system (FC, GB, GBA, GBC, SFC), while in a game:

  • Menu + X to open Quick Menu
  • "B" to back out to RetroArch Main Menu
  • Settings > On-Screen Display > On-Screen Overlay > Overlay Preset
  • Choose the correct overlay preset for the system you're playing.
  • "B" 3x to back out to main menu.
  • Quick Menu > Overrides
  • Save Core Override

Install new theme

Note that theme support is rather inconsistent between versions. For now, I suggest you don't install a custom theme.

Start new game

By default, a game continues from a save state, which is super cool, but if you want to start a game from the beginning, start it by pressing the START button rather than pressing the "A" button.

Multi-disc Games

To switch discs in multi-disc games:

  • Menu + X to open Quick Menu
  • Disc Control > Eject Disc
  • Change the Disc Index
  • Insert Disc

Add Videos

GarlicOS can play videos! To convert:

Install Handbrake

Create new Preset

Presets > Add Preset

  • Name: RG35XX
  • Resolution Limit: Custom
  • Maximum Size: 640 x 480

Click "Add"

Summary Tab:

  • Format: MKV

Video Tab:

  • Video Encoder: MPEG-2
  • Framerate (FPS): Same as source
  • Constant Framerate
  • Constant Quality: 3

Presets > Update Current Preset

Convert Video

Ensure "RG35XX" preset is selected.

Open your video file.

Convert.

Copy videos to /Roms/VIDEOS folder on "ROMS" drive.

Shortcuts

In main menu:

Button Action
A Enter
B Return
Select Change CPU speed
Start Change the clock time (in main menu)
MENU + Vol + brightness
MENU + Vol - brightness

In game menu:

Button Action
Y Save/Remove Favorite
A Start game
Start Start game without saved state

During the game:

Note: First hold MENU for a second and then while holding MENU, press the button.

Button Action
MENU Return to GarlicOS
L1 + L2 MAME Menu ("Arcade" only)
MENU + X Retroarch Menu
MENU + UP Screenshot
MENU + DOWN Audio Mute
MENU + LEFT/RIGHT Change the save state slot
MENU + L1 Fast forward toggle
MENU + R1 Slow motion toggle
MENU + START Pause
MENU + SELECT FPS display

Images

Install Skraper

Click "Wizard", click "YES"

  • Enter Screenscraper Account info, click "Validate", click "NEXT"
  • Front-End Selection: GENERIC EMULATION, click "NEXT"
  • Choose root of ROM path (e.g. /Roms on SD card), click "NEXT"

Click "FINISH"

Add missing systems (due to folder naming differences)

  • Click "+"
  • Uncheck "Show Categories"
  • Under "Console" select:
    • ATARI 2600
    • ATARI 5200
    • ATARI 7800
    • GENESIS
    • MASTER SYSTEM
    • NES
    • PC-ENGINE CD-ROM
    • PLAYSTATION
    • SEGA 32X
    • SUPER NINTENDO
    • TURBOGRAFX-16
    • VIRTUAL BOY
    • WATARA SUPERVISION
    • WONDERSWAN
  • Click "OK"

Games & Front-End Tab:

Modify Games/Roms Folder for each of those systems (click on each one at a time in left panel):

e.g. "F:\Roms\NEC PC Engine CD-Rom" to "F:\Roms\PCECD"

  • ATARI 2600 : ATARI
  • ATARI 5200 : FIFTYTWOHUNDRED
  • ATARI 7800 : SEVENTYEIGHTHUNDRED
  • GENESIS : MD
  • MASTER SYSTEM : MS
  • NEC PC ENGINE : PCE
  • NEC PC-ENGINE CD-ROM : PCECD
  • NES : FC
  • PLAYSTATION : PS
  • SEGA 32X : THIRTYTWOX
  • SUPER NINTENDO : SFC
  • VIRTUAL BOY : VB
  • WATARA SUPERVISION : SUPERVISION
  • WONDERSWAN : WS

Click on "ALL SYSTEMS" (left panel)

Media Tab:

Note that 320x240 is used here, despite the native resolution being 640x480. This is done to create smaller image files which load faster.

  • Click on "MANUAL" and Click "-" (Remove)
  • Click on "IMAGES MIX"
    • Output folder: %ROMROOTFOLDER%\media\images -> %ROMROOTFOLDER%\Imgs
  • In right box, click ">" until "INTERNAL MIX" > "2 IMAGES MIX" shows.
  • Cleanup output folder before generating new medias
  • Resize width to: 320
  • Resize height to: 240
  • "Keep Image Ratio"

Click play button in button right corner, click "OK"

When complete, you can deelte the *.dat files that are in each ROM folder.

In addition, each ROM folder will have a *.Missing.Serial.txt file - this file contains ROMS that weren't known to skraper.

HDMI Adapter

The HDMI port on the rg35xx is a Mini HDMI port. To use the HDMI, get a "Mini HDMI Male to HDMI Female Cable" and plug one end into the 35xx, and the other end into a standard HDMI cable.

Tech Info

Core Mappings

/CFW/config/coremapping.json contains a JSON mapping of ROM folder to the core used, e.g.

"ARCADE": "km_mame2003_xtreme_libretro.so",

These cores are in /CFW/retroarch/.retroarch/cores.

MAME mapping

/CFW/config/mame.csv is a comma-seperated list of mame rom name to friendly name, e.g.

aligator,Alligator Hunt (World, protected)

If you find that one of your MAME roms isn't showing a friendly name, it might not be in this list!

RetroArch Overlays

The images for the overlays (.png files) live in /CFW/retroarch/.retroarch/overlay.

RetroArch Directories

/CFW/retroarch/.retroarch/retroarch.cfg has paths to interesting files and folders, e.g.

content_favorites_path = ":/.retroarch/content_favorites.lpl"
content_history_directory = "/mnt/SDCARD/Saves/CurrentProfile/lists"
content_history_path = "/mnt/SDCARD/Saves/CurrentProfile/lists/content_history.lpl"
savefile_directory = "/mnt/SDCARD/Saves/CurrentProfile/saves"
savestate_directory = "/mnt/SDCARD/Saves/CurrentProfile/states"
screenshot_directory = "/mnt/SDCARD/Screenshots"

RetroArch Logs

If a game won't start, it's possible that the RetroArch logs will give you some indication why.

Logs are stored in /CFW/retroarch/.retroarch/logs/retroarch.log.

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