Absolute Beginners : Flashfloppy – Troubleshooting

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There are a number of steps you go through when installing a Gotek/Flashfloppy drive.

Physical installation :

Most systems require a Shugart interface (default) and the select line 0 signal (jumper on S0).
These systems work out of the box with a standard Gotek configured with FlashFloppy firmware.
Only a jumper on the back may need to be moved from the S1 position to the S0 Position.
(All drives supplied by me with FlashFloppy are supplied with the default setting S0)

If this is not enough to get the drive working, you can try the following steps :
(It is wise to restart the machine after each step so that you are sure that the new settings have been activated and are recognized by the host system)

  • Place a jumper on S1 (Move S0 jumper) (You always jumped OR S0, OR S1, never both)
  • Place an extra jumper on JC (and one on S0)
  • Place an extra jumper on JC (and one on S1)

If the system still does not work and the green LED stays on continuously, it may be that the floppy cable is wrong, try mounting the cable upside down,

And lastly. In most cases FlashFloppy requires a straight floppy cable, without any twists.
If you do use a twisted cable, you should set jumper MO instead of jumper S0.
(The only exception to this story is what the twisted-pair cable is designed for, when the drive is used as Drive B: in a PC.)

Gotek with Flashfloppy Connected Externally to a Amiga 500

Using your Gotek as an external drive on the Amiga:

If you replace an existing external Amiga drive with a Gotek drive with FlashFloppy, it may not be recognized by the Amiga, or the Amiga may not boot from this external drive.
The most common reason for this is that some external floppy disk interfaces rely on a PC Drive and are therefore made to use a PC drive as an external Amiga drive.

Move the jumper on the gotek from S0 to S1 , that would solve the problem in these cases.

If the drive is connected, it will be recognized, but you will not be able to load files from your prepared USB Stick :

In the event of errors, one or more of the following messages may be shown by FlashFloppy on the display. (Between brackets, the detailed message on an LCD or OLED screen)

FF ( FlashFloppy v2.xx )

Although this is not an error message , it is the first status message you see when you have connected a gotek and no USB stick has been detected.

Make sure that your USB stick is plugged in correctly, that it has an MBR Partition (no GPT partition!) and that it is also FAT32 formatted (no EXFAT).
(Windows nowadays formats the large USB Sticks with EXFAT by default, to format them in FAT32 you will have to use an alternative piece of software.)

Fxx (FAT xx) or (FATFS xx)

A 2 digit error message as defined in the FatFS library.

In HxC mode this usually means there are slots that are no longer correct, the easiest way to fix this is to copy a new version of the HXCSDFE.CFG to the root of your USB and refill it with the Autoboot Image selector.

It can also be a message that appears when your USB stick has had its day, in that case you can try formatting the USB stick (Slow format) still helps, otherwise it is wise to replace your USB stick.

Exx  (ERR xx) or (ERROR xx)

A 2 digit error message as defined by the Flashfloppy firmware.

E30  Disk Full: Some writes were lost. Delete some files or use a larger USB drive.
E31  Bad Image File: The selected image is invalid or unsupported.
E32  Bad HXCSDFE.CFG: The config file is invalid or unsupported. Copy a fresh version to the USB drive.
E33  Bad IMAGE_A.CFG: The last-image file has become corrupted. Delete it from the USB drive and it will be automatically recreated.
E34  No entries to navigate:
Direct Navigation mode found no valid directories or image files to display. Add some valid image files to the USB drive. Subfolders are accessible only when using an LCD/OLED display.
Indexed mode found no valid DSKA*.* image names. Add some valid image files to the USB drive.
E35  Path too deep: Folders are nested too deeply to navigate.

RIB  (Ribbon Cable May Be Upside Down?)

The Floppy (data) cable is plugged in the wrong way round , turn off the system and plug in the floppy cable the other way around.
(There are some systems where the pin 1 position is rotated 180 degrees relative to the Gotek Drive.)

In some cases this can also be caused if your Gotek drive is supplied with power independently, then you must first turn on the host machine before turning on the Gotek.
(In the event that this message occurs because of this, the message will disappear automatically when the host machine is started and the drive is initialized.

USB  (USB Power Fault)

Overload problem on the USB port, the port is disabled until a key is pressed on the Gotek.

Bron : Keir Fraser

For detailed documentation on supported hardware, please visit this link on the Flashfloppy page.

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