How to install WB and boot from CF - Amiga 600?

Hatt · 31 August 2023, 14:24

Before I send my 600 in for recapping, I wanted to do some mods.

I bought a CF to IDE adapter and a Cloanto 3.1 ROM chip as my 600 is an early one and had 37.299

I have a 1GB CF card out of my old DSLR.

The ROM chip is working, but I can't see any sign of the CF card when I boot into WB.

Do I need to pre-format the card in a specific format? Or is it the version of WB I'm using?

The WB floppy disk I have doesn't seem to have an installer that I can find. I have installed WB via WinUAE ages ago, but not so sure what to do with real hardware.

Is there a way I can set the CF card up on my Mac and just install it in the Amiga or do I need to do something else?

Snoopy1234 · 31 August 2023, 14:37

The Os 3.1 Install floppy has HDToolBox which is used to partition and format the card.
It can also be done in emulation of a PC with WinUAE or similar on Linux etc. This has to be done for WB to see it.

When formatting, FFS is ok up to a drive size of 4GB. Over that many use PFS3AIO which is also faster. PFS3AIO has to be added manually to HDToolbox as it's not a native filesystem.

Hatt · 31 August 2023, 15:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snoopy1234

The Os 3.1 Install floppy has HDToolBox which is used to partition and format the card.
It can also be done in emulation of a PC with WinUAE or similar on Linux etc. This has to be done for WB to see it.

When formatting, FFS is ok up to a drive size of 4GB. Over that many use PFS3AIO which is also faster. PFS3AIO has to be added manually to HDToolbox as it's not a native filesystem.

Thanks.

So I only have WB 2.05 on floppy. I don't have an 'install' disk, only the disks I got back in 1992.

WB 37.71

I also can't see HDToolbox.

Do I need a later version of WB to do this?

Is there any way I can setup the HDD using my Mac? I don't have access to a Windows or Linux machine currently. I have FS-UAE installed, but tbh I've found it a bit challenging compared to WinUAE.

Hatt · 31 August 2023, 22:19

Should I get something like this? Or am I still going to end up needing something on a floppy to get it all up and running?

https://www.amigakit.com/a600-compac...rs0vgv87l9nlsq

Daedalus · 31 August 2023, 23:10

HDToolbox also only comes on the Install floppy, so you need to use that first. Machines that didn't come with a hard drive from the factory weren't supplied with an Install disk. But you have version 2.05 there - while it will work, you should really install 3.1 for the best experience. I take it you don't have any way of writing an Amiga floppy disk other than with that A600? It's a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation then... Maybe there's an Amiga user near you that could help?

It can probably be done with FS-UAE on the Mac, but it's not something I have experience with. You would need to mount the CF card on the Mac and add it to the FS-UAE config such that it's able to read and write the card directly.

That particular CF card won't help as that doesn't have the OS itself installed - you still need the Workbench disks.

Snoopy1234 · 31 August 2023, 23:14

I would definitely use 3.1 software from Cloanto or original commodore if you are installing the 3.1 rom as it has updated drivers etc. You could buy Amiga Forever which has adf images of all the OS system disks and use them to install the cf hdd either by writing disks or in emulation. I haven't used a Mac for this so I don't know if there's a Mac version. Otherwise sourcing an OS 3.1 OS (inc Install disk) would be the best option. There are guides on Youtube and the web.

31 August 2023, 14:24	#1
Hatt Registered User Join Date: Oct 2019 Location: Milton Keynes Posts: 31	How to install WB and boot from CF - Amiga 600? Before I send my 600 in for recapping, I wanted to do some mods. I bought a CF to IDE adapter and a Cloanto 3.1 ROM chip as my 600 is an early one and had 37.299 I have a 1GB CF card out of my old DSLR. The ROM chip is working, but I can't see any sign of the CF card when I boot into WB. Do I need to pre-format the card in a specific format? Or is it the version of WB I'm using? The WB floppy disk I have doesn't seem to have an installer that I can find. I have installed WB via WinUAE ages ago, but not so sure what to do with real hardware. Is there a way I can set the CF card up on my Mac and just install it in the Amiga or do I need to do something else?

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31 August 2023, 14:37	#2
Snoopy1234 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2022 Location: Australia Age: 52 Posts: 844	The Os 3.1 Install floppy has HDToolBox which is used to partition and format the card. It can also be done in emulation of a PC with WinUAE or similar on Linux etc. This has to be done for WB to see it. When formatting, FFS is ok up to a drive size of 4GB. Over that many use PFS3AIO which is also faster. PFS3AIO has to be added manually to HDToolbox as it's not a native filesystem.

31 August 2023, 22:19	#4
Hatt Registered User Join Date: Oct 2019 Location: Milton Keynes Posts: 31	Should I get something like this? Or am I still going to end up needing something on a floppy to get it all up and running? https://www.amigakit.com/a600-compac...rs0vgv87l9nlsq

31 August 2023, 23:10	#5
Daedalus Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Dublin, then Glasgow Posts: 6,343	HDToolbox also only comes on the Install floppy, so you need to use that first. Machines that didn't come with a hard drive from the factory weren't supplied with an Install disk. But you have version 2.05 there - while it will work, you should really install 3.1 for the best experience. I take it you don't have any way of writing an Amiga floppy disk other than with that A600? It's a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation then... Maybe there's an Amiga user near you that could help? It can probably be done with FS-UAE on the Mac, but it's not something I have experience with. You would need to mount the CF card on the Mac and add it to the FS-UAE config such that it's able to read and write the card directly. That particular CF card won't help as that doesn't have the OS itself installed - you still need the Workbench disks.

31 August 2023, 23:14	#6
Snoopy1234 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2022 Location: Australia Age: 52 Posts: 844	I would definitely use 3.1 software from Cloanto or original commodore if you are installing the 3.1 rom as it has updated drivers etc. You could buy Amiga Forever which has adf images of all the OS system disks and use them to install the cf hdd either by writing disks or in emulation. I haven't used a Mac for this so I don't know if there's a Mac version. Otherwise sourcing an OS 3.1 OS (inc Install disk) would be the best option. There are guides on Youtube and the web.

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