Transforming old PC hardware into powerful classic Amigas

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 13:49

I'm positive people have done these kind of projects before, but I thought it would be interesting to look again at the wonderful opportunities we have for creating powerful Classic Amiga setups out of old cheap PC hardware using the power of WinUAE.

Real Amiga classic hardware is expensive and getting on now in years. Many have leaking batteries or require cap replacement, so this is a viable option for those who want to create an Amiga out of say, an ITX PC system or some old PC hardware.

So what's stopping us using BartPE and PEbuilder for instance to create a very lightweight Windows XP installation that boots straight into fullscreen WinUAE?

I'm sure we can add our own boot pic and have full network support. Plus with it being an XP build, it will have great driver support. We can make use of the fact JIT can be enabled and disabled from within the Workbench too.

Has anyone already done such a project? I remember various Linux efforts, and one called "Amiga on a stick". I just think it would be great if we can put together our own pack that can be used with Amikit, AmigaSYS and ClassicWB.

Please feel free to discuss any options.

I'd love to have a mini ITX system that is purely used for being a Classic Amiga.

seuden · 15 January 2010, 14:15

I have a spare P4 3.0Ghz HT, 1GB ram, 120GB HDD system that I wanted to do this too. I was thinking something along the lines of TinyXP to start with.

EDIT: I'm thinking of booting straight into OS3.1 (via WinUAE), I think anything higher than that I would lose any retro feeling I wanted to achieve.

s2325 · 15 January 2010, 14:25

My old laptop have option in BIOS to skip all hardware testing, so you need only 2-3 seconds to load OS (MS-DOS) and UAE/Fellow. Maybe some of newer PCs have this option also...

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 15:25

TinyXP would work, but I like the idea of BartPE combined with peinst to install it on a hard drive:

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en...G=Search&meta=

You can also run BartPE easily from a stand alone CD/DVD or USB stick.

xc8 · 15 January 2010, 15:42

I m using a CF card on ExpressCard54 adapter (on my laptop) it can be boot directly there.
I use DRDOS (a bit old , but its usefull to load old win 3 and DESQview)..
I can load the VICE C64 and Fellow in seconds.. the only problem is there is NO sound, as modern PCs that have HDA audio or similar sound chipset there is no DOS drivers to support sound.. (and these chipsets are NO way compatible with SBlaster)..

chris

Retro1234 · 15 January 2010, 15:44

Im likeing this a ClassicWb for PC

I havent done exactly this but did try and make a live CD with BartPe and WinUae the only problem I had was WinUae seemed very slow compared to my normal XP setup - But didnt realy go that far into experimenting.
Theres info about on using WinUae as your main shell on Windows and there another tool for min XP installation but cant think what its called.

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 15:49

Thanks for the info Boo Boo. If it ran slow it might have been the medium - CD/DVD's have poor seek times. Or it might be a missing file or driver.

The program you can use to make custom XP installs is nLite, but there are other strip down programs too.

Retro1234 · 15 January 2010, 16:06

Or a ClassicWb Flavor of Aros - Aros without all the plugins looks the same as Wb3.0 is compatible with normal WB icons, has a level of UAE integration for Classic Games/Demos and of course is freeware and can run Live from CD.

seuden · 15 January 2010, 16:06

Have you tried AmigaSYS Bloodbych?

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 16:59

Of course, I've tried AmigaSYS and Amikit. It would be ignorant of me not to have given them a go.

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 17:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boo Boo

Or a ClassicWb Flavor of Aros - Aros without all the plugins looks the same as Wb3.0 is compatible with normal WB icons, has a level of UAE integration for Classic Games/Demos and of course is freeware and can run Live from CD.

AROS is kind of already covered by other people, but as you said it would be nice to have a Classic looking theme.

The reason I want to use BartPE and WinUAE, is the massive hardware compatibility offered by XP combined with the brilliance and completeness of WinUAE itself.

seuden · 15 January 2010, 17:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bloodwych

AROS is kind of already covered by other people, but as you said it would be nice to have a Classic looking theme.

The reason I want to use BartPE and WinUAE, is the massive hardware compatibility offered by XP combined with the brilliance and completeness of WinUAE itself.

Agreed.

Eclipse · 15 January 2010, 17:51

This would be awesome and something if it ever came to fruition that i would be arsed to do.
Afterall you could still plug it into a TV if you wanted to, or monitor and HD TV etc for the purists.
The list is endless with Winuae but with ClassicWB as the OS I think it would be awesome.

gulliver · 15 January 2010, 18:11

The best solution for this type of minimal setup is Windows XP Embedded. The downside is that you have to be a Windows geek to compile a proper Windows XP Embedded enviroment for WinUAE.
There is also WinBuilder, which is better that nLite, but requires a more skillfull Windows user. Anyway, it is not better than Windows XP embedded.

I hope someone dares use Windows XP Embedded for this, and guide us on how to achieve that. With XP Embedded i witnessed a Windows XP build with a footprint of 15MB!

adolescent · 15 January 2010, 18:13

I have an Atom 330 ITX board that would be nice to use for this. Is BartPE still the way to go for PE building? (Although, in the end I think I would prefer a complete XP install for ease of use.)

radon_22 · 15 January 2010, 18:16

I was working on a similar project a while back- An Amiga-on-a-stick, using BartPE. It works. Pretty well, actually. I replaced the boot screens, set it to boot straight into a Winuae profile, etc. I keep planning on putting a guide together, but have never got around to it. And distribution of the actual final product might bring the wrath of Microsoft.

As much as I love the idea behind AROS, driver support will probably never be that great. (Something like "Driverloader" or "ndiswrapper" from Linux would be a gamechanger.) As such, it's not really an option for me.

A slightly modified Linux would be perfect. (KX Light with Amiga Forever is too stripped down.) No worries about copyright infringement, acceptable driver support, and the ability to run on slightly older machines make it the best solution, IMHO.

Bloodwych · 15 January 2010, 18:24

Hi radon_22, yeah I mentioned your project in my opening post. I remember reading about it in the past.

The thing is, with BartPE you can use PE builder can't you and let the end user add the copyright files? We just need to customize it for WinUAE. I'm sure we could think of something.

As for Linux, the weakness there is UAE or E-UAE. It has to be WinUAE, it's just the best!

Someone already started a Linux project:

http://www.xamiga.net/

plus there are other solutions around the net too using Linux including the Amigaforever CD.

As for Windows XP Embedded - if some one could use that then great!

Retro1234 · 15 January 2010, 18:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bloodwych

Thanks for the info Boo Boo. If it ran slow it might have been the medium - CD/DVD's have poor seek times. Or it might be a missing file or driver.

I think the problem is its just using XP basic drivers rathers than your drivers for your specific graphics card/motherboard........ - But I was probably running some steroid OS3.9 Png icon setup - something a little less should be ok.

tero · 15 January 2010, 19:13

It's possible to integrate up to date drivers
change gfx of the install screen and much more
They work on custom-install and live cd's
Have a look here:
http://unattended.msfn.org

BE AWARE!
The side itself is ok but some of the links they have point to dangerous sites

Retro1234 · 15 January 2010, 20:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by tero

It's possible to integrate up to date drivers
change gfx of the install screen and much more
They work on custom-install and live cd's
Have a look here:
http://unattended.msfn.org

BE AWARE!
The side itself is ok but some of the links they have point to dangerous sites

Thanks for the link tero

I guess if your going to include ways of adding drivers aswell you want to make it user friendley.

15 January 2010, 13:49	#1
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	Transforming old PC hardware into powerful classic Amigas I'm positive people have done these kind of projects before, but I thought it would be interesting to look again at the wonderful opportunities we have for creating powerful Classic Amiga setups out of old cheap PC hardware using the power of WinUAE. Real Amiga classic hardware is expensive and getting on now in years. Many have leaking batteries or require cap replacement, so this is a viable option for those who want to create an Amiga out of say, an ITX PC system or some old PC hardware. So what's stopping us using BartPE and PEbuilder for instance to create a very lightweight Windows XP installation that boots straight into fullscreen WinUAE? I'm sure we can add our own boot pic and have full network support. Plus with it being an XP build, it will have great driver support. We can make use of the fact JIT can be enabled and disabled from within the Workbench too. Has anyone already done such a project? I remember various Linux efforts, and one called "Amiga on a stick". I just think it would be great if we can put together our own pack that can be used with Amikit, AmigaSYS and ClassicWB. Please feel free to discuss any options. I'd love to have a mini ITX system that is purely used for being a Classic Amiga.

15 January 2010, 14:15	#2
seuden uber cool demi god Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Kent/England Posts: 2,073	I have a spare P4 3.0Ghz HT, 1GB ram, 120GB HDD system that I wanted to do this too. I was thinking something along the lines of TinyXP to start with. EDIT: I'm thinking of booting straight into OS3.1 (via WinUAE), I think anything higher than that I would lose any retro feeling I wanted to achieve. Last edited by seuden; 15 January 2010 at 14:24.

15 January 2010, 18:16	#16
radon_22 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 77	I was working on a similar project a while back- An Amiga-on-a-stick, using BartPE. It works. Pretty well, actually. I replaced the boot screens, set it to boot straight into a Winuae profile, etc. I keep planning on putting a guide together, but have never got around to it. And distribution of the actual final product might bring the wrath of Microsoft. As much as I love the idea behind AROS, driver support will probably never be that great. (Something like "Driverloader" or "ndiswrapper" from Linux would be a gamechanger.) As such, it's not really an option for me. A slightly modified Linux would be perfect. (KX Light with Amiga Forever is too stripped down.) No worries about copyright infringement, acceptable driver support, and the ability to run on slightly older machines make it the best solution, IMHO. Last edited by radon_22; 15 January 2010 at 18:25.

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15 January 2010, 14:25	#3
s2325 Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Gargore Age: 43 Posts: 17,789	My old laptop have option in BIOS to skip all hardware testing, so you need only 2-3 seconds to load OS (MS-DOS) and UAE/Fellow. Maybe some of newer PCs have this option also...

15 January 2010, 15:25	#4
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	TinyXP would work, but I like the idea of BartPE combined with peinst to install it on a hard drive: http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en...G=Search&meta= You can also run BartPE easily from a stand alone CD/DVD or USB stick.

15 January 2010, 15:42	#5
xc8 no c= no fun Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Birmingham Posts: 313	I m using a CF card on ExpressCard54 adapter (on my laptop) it can be boot directly there. I use DRDOS (a bit old , but its usefull to load old win 3 and DESQview).. I can load the VICE C64 and Fellow in seconds.. the only problem is there is NO sound, as modern PCs that have HDA audio or similar sound chipset there is no DOS drivers to support sound.. (and these chipsets are NO way compatible with SBlaster).. chris

15 January 2010, 15:44	#6
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,778	Im likeing this a ClassicWb for PC I havent done exactly this but did try and make a live CD with BartPe and WinUae the only problem I had was WinUae seemed very slow compared to my normal XP setup - But didnt realy go that far into experimenting. Theres info about on using WinUae as your main shell on Windows and there another tool for min XP installation but cant think what its called.

15 January 2010, 15:49	#7
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	Thanks for the info Boo Boo. If it ran slow it might have been the medium - CD/DVD's have poor seek times. Or it might be a missing file or driver. The program you can use to make custom XP installs is nLite, but there are other strip down programs too.

15 January 2010, 16:06	#8
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,778	Or a ClassicWb Flavor of Aros - Aros without all the plugins looks the same as Wb3.0 is compatible with normal WB icons, has a level of UAE integration for Classic Games/Demos and of course is freeware and can run Live from CD.

15 January 2010, 16:59	#10
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	Of course, I've tried AmigaSYS and Amikit. It would be ignorant of me not to have given them a go.

15 January 2010, 17:51	#13
Eclipse Turpentine Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Kent, United Kingdom Posts: 744	This would be awesome and something if it ever came to fruition that i would be arsed to do. Afterall you could still plug it into a TV if you wanted to, or monitor and HD TV etc for the purists. The list is endless with Winuae but with ClassicWB as the OS I think it would be awesome.

15 January 2010, 18:11	#14
gulliver BoingBagged Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: The South of nowhere Age: 46 Posts: 2,358	The best solution for this type of minimal setup is Windows XP Embedded. The downside is that you have to be a Windows geek to compile a proper Windows XP Embedded enviroment for WinUAE. There is also WinBuilder, which is better that nLite, but requires a more skillfull Windows user. Anyway, it is not better than Windows XP embedded. I hope someone dares use Windows XP Embedded for this, and guide us on how to achieve that. With XP Embedded i witnessed a Windows XP build with a footprint of 15MB!

15 January 2010, 18:13	#15
adolescent Powered by Motorola Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Redondo Beach, CA Age: 52 Posts: 1,065	I have an Atom 330 ITX board that would be nice to use for this. Is BartPE still the way to go for PE building? (Although, in the end I think I would prefer a complete XP install for ease of use.)

15 January 2010, 18:24	#17
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	Hi radon_22, yeah I mentioned your project in my opening post. I remember reading about it in the past. The thing is, with BartPE you can use PE builder can't you and let the end user add the copyright files? We just need to customize it for WinUAE. I'm sure we could think of something. As for Linux, the weakness there is UAE or E-UAE. It has to be WinUAE, it's just the best! Someone already started a Linux project: http://www.xamiga.net/ plus there are other solutions around the net too using Linux including the Amigaforever CD. As for Windows XP Embedded - if some one could use that then great!

15 January 2010, 19:13	#19
tero Registered User Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: M'Gladbach Age: 46 Posts: 621	It's possible to integrate up to date drivers change gfx of the install screen and much more They work on custom-install and live cd's Have a look here: http://unattended.msfn.org BE AWARE! The side itself is ok but some of the links they have point to dangerous sites

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