A utility for compiling a custom CDI containing Dreamcast VMU save files.
It supports VMI/VMS pairs representing either game save data, mini-games, or icons.
VMU Disc Builder leverages mkisofs and cdi4dc as helper utilities.
Current Version
VMU Disc Builder is currently at version 1.1.Changelog
- Version 1.1 (2024-11-01)
- Dummy file creation now optional, allowing ODE users to save storage space.
- Version 1.0 (2024-10-24)
- Initial release.
Best Practices
VMU Disc Builder leverages a custom English-language version of the Dream Passport Web Browser and as such is constrained to RAM limitations of both the browser software and the Dreamcast console itself. It's not recommended that users build a disc using hundreds or thousands of saves, as it will cause each indexed page to load very slowly.Instead, it's suggested that users curate a list of only the save files, mini-games, and icons that they wish to use.
A Note on Malformed VMI Files
During the development of VMU Disc Builder, certain malformed VMI files circulating on the internet were discovered. Oftentimes, these VMI files begin with a single lowercase letter (e.g.,v7936.VMI).If a user sees a "Download failed" message after booting their disc, they must repair the VMI/VMS pair using VMU Explorer. The process is simple.
- Launch VMU Explorer.
- Click "File" -> "New VM".
- Click "File" -> "Import file".
- Select the original problematic VMI file.
- Once imported, right-click the save file and select "Export".
- Either use the default filename, or give the VMI/VMS pair a custom filename not exceeding eight characters, not including the extension (e.g.,
12345678.VMIand12345678.VMS).
Usage
VMU Disc Builder is designed to be as easy to use as possible.After downloading the release package, extract the ZIP file to any folder of your choosing. A folder and file structure as follows will be created.
Code:
.
├── assets
│ ├── ARIALUNI.TTF
│ ├── disc_image.zip
│ ├── html
│ │ ├── 1.html
│ │ ├── 2.html
│ │ ├── 3.html
│ │ └── 4.html
│ └── no_icon.gif
├── output
├── save_files
├── tools
│ ├── cdi4dc.exe
│ └── mkisofs.exe
└── vmu_disc_builder.exePlace VMI/VMS file pairs in the
save_files folder. Note that nested subfolders are fully supported, and in fact encouraged when dealing with a large collection of saves where duplicate file names may be used.Once all desired save files have been copied, launch the
vmu_disc_builder.exe application. It will process all valid VMI/VMS pairs in the save_files folder and produce status updates throughout the build process.
Once the CDI has been built, it will be written to the
output folder and ready for use, either via ODE or burned disc.
