Noob needs help

[Dippy]

Hello all, I came across PhatHack a while ago but I have only just got around to having a go. Immediately I am having trouble.

I originally installed a US Phatbox in my Audi, controlled by a SatNav+ (RNS-D). I have been using it with a 20GB DMS with no trouble (apart from the audio glitches and 'no CD' messages that I understand are expected on a European car.

I managed to buy an 80GB DMS from an e-bay seller and believe that it was an original DMS as opposed to a hacked one. I could view both PHTSYS and PHTDTA in windows explorer, each full of files similar to my 20GB DMS. However PHTDTA was full of folders that the seller had left there so I decided I would start again.

I did a DMS backup for both cartridges, however I got an error message if the signature box was ticked. At this stage I have no idea what are the consequences of this.

I have tried to use PhatHack DMS tools to create a new DMS but it always fails. I have Windows 7 so I tried rebooting but it did not help. So then I tried doing a repair (full), but PhatHack DMS tools hung and I had to power down the cradle to recover it. After that the PHTSYS drive was unformatted so I had to reformat. Then I tried PHTSYS repair, it took a long time in the format stage, came up with a timeout error message and then hung. I had to repear the cradle reboot and then format PHYSYS again.

I had believed that I could proceed with non-hacked firmware. Do I now need to abandon that and proceed with the hacked firmware?

Can anyone provide any advice on how I should proceed?

[VorTechS]

You need to make sure you run the DMS tools using elevated permissions, if the provided shortcut in the start menu doesn't work try right-clicking and 'Run as administrator'.

The tools will use low-level utilities to access the disk, and if you don't use elevated permissions these will fail because Windows will not allow them to access the drive.

If you were doing this, then we need to have a look and see if we can establish what might be going on.  What version of cradle are you using?

[Dippy]

I am fairly sure that I was running with admin rights. On the sticker on the bottom of the cradle I see "DMS-USB2 rev -"

I managed to create new DMS on the 80GB cartridge. However presumably it is no use to me in this state because the 'signature' has been lost and my Phatbox is unhacked?

I am in a situation where I have a usable unhacked Phatbox and 20GB DMS which works in it. But I want to use the 80GB DMS instead. If I understand it correctly the only way I can do this is to use the 20GB DMS as the vehicle to hack my Phatbox?

But what worries me is that (after my experience) something will go wrong and I'll end up with both DMS reformatted and an unhacked Phatbox which I can't use until I manage to get another original DMS!

[VorTechS]

As long as you use the DMS tools to perform any formatting, you won't lose anything.  It is specifically designed to partition the disks correctly (when you do a FULL repair or Create New DMS) and during the hack process also backs up your disk signature (which you can manually DD back onto the disk if required).

If your 20GB is working in it fine, it will continue to work fine when touched by the DMS tools!

[Dippy]

VorTechS,

thanks a lot for the support, and thanks for all the work you did on these tools in the first place.

It is now apparent that I have destroyed the 80GB DMS as a genuine one - my Phatbox refuses to recognise it. So I'll have to go ahead and use my 20GB DMS. As I noted I am wary of killing that one too so I want to be ultra careful.

The good news is that I managed to get DMS backup to run without error. So I have created 3 files:
DMS20original.ddb (1MB)
DMS20original.dsb (2.26MB)
DMS20original.dtb (3.43MB)

Does this look correct?

However I have never seen the DMS Restore button in DMS tools become ungreyed. Did you ever complete this part of the tool?

I started to run the Hack Wizard but then stopped as I was unsure about a few things.

* I read that there was a problem with the tools in conjunction with PhatHack Media Manager. Did this get fixed with v2.15 of DMS tools? I have uninstalled it anyway.

* The instructions just show using the Hack Wizard without any mention of updating firmware. I installed my Phatbox many years ago so I really can't remember whether or not I kept its firmware up to date. However I do note that some of the PHTSYS files are dated 3rd Nov 2004 which is the date that the latest Audi-Native v7.02 was released. Does this imply that I must have the latest firmware? Anyway the question still remains whether or not I should be doing anything with the DMS tools firmware options before using the Hack Wizard. I assume not because I can only set them in DMS Tools Mode, and then when I change to Hack Wizard Mode they get greyed out. Please would you kindly explain a bit more about the Hack process? Do I just go ahead irrespective of what firmware I have, and then check if I need to update after the Phatbox is hacked?

* I am very grateful that you are answering my posts. If something goes wrong do you have time to support me to diagnose the problem and hopefully achieve hacked status?

Thanks in advance.

[VorTechS]

Wow, the incompatibility was such a long time ago!
There is no longer an issue with the two pieces of software.

The 'restore' process has never been needed, so it was never finished.  The files generated through the back process look correct (1 is the dd backup, 1 is sytem files and I forget the last one)

I will give you as much support as I can possibly give. 

Youdon't need to do anything for a hack, other than run the hack wizard.  It is straight forward process that you can't break!  Just make sure your box is switched to Pkaylist mode, Pkaylist 1 track 1 - if it isn't already when you put it in the car!

[Dippy]

Thanks. Do you know how I can check if my Phatbox has the latest firmware?

[VorTechS]

Start the DMS tools, click on 'DMS Tools Mode' and the firmware dropdown will auto-populate with the version detected on your DMS.  This is no guarantee this is what is on your box unless you've owned it throughout it's history!
Drop the box down and you should be able to identify if there is a newer version.

Anyway, don't worry about firmware versions if the box is working right now!  Just get the hack done

[Dippy]

Thanks for the help. I have successfully hacked my Phatbox!
I was a little concerned that I did not hear the 'hacked' message so after about 15 mins I restarted it and got the message.

I initially kept the original 20GB DMS in to check. It played music but the controls were erratic: If I tried to search by artist it went quiet and I got NO CARTRIDGE/CD on the display. I needed to restart the head several times before music would play again. Is this sort of behaviour to be expected after a hack?

I have been struggling with the 80GB DMS. As far as I can tell the HDD is OK, but it took me several goes to prepare it using 'create DMS' so that I got the "DMS ready" message when it was in the Phatbox. And then I have had continual problems with both Phathack MM and Phatnoise MM hanging when trying to write to the DMS. I once managed to transfer a few tracks to it to test, and indeed it worked in the Phatbox, playing the music and with full menu facilities working (unlike the original DMS). The only problem seemed to be the voice feedback which didn't sound quite right.

It appears that the DMS and/or cradle is causing the MMs to hang. It sits there with just its red light on but makes the motor slowing down noise every once in a while. As soon as I power it down, the MM becomes responsive again. As yet I don't seem to be able to get it working again.

Any ideas?

[Dippy]

Further development.

My DMS/cradle seemed to be really causing problems, including stopping the PC from shutting down and even at one point causing a hang during boot! When I powered it down and the boot continued I realised that I was going to have trouble using it on this PC. So I tried another PC - not a physical one - but a Windows XP virtual PC. After installing Phathack MM and sharing the DMS/cradle on the USB drop-down, to my surprise it appears to be fully working! I need to spend more time learning how to use it, but I do have two questions:

1) On Win 7 PHMM starts with the music and the long "Phathack". On XP there is also a voice giving me a message, but because of the music I can't really understand it. It sounds like information or a warning. Any Idea what it is talking about?
2) XP has Microsoft Sam's voice and Win 7 has Microsoft Anna. Anna is not great but Sam is worse. Do you know if i can install Anna on XP, or better still another voice altogether?

[Dippy]

3) Is DMS Tools supposed to work on XP? I get a .NET unhandled exception error "Could not find special directory 'My Documents'"

[VorTechS]

1) "Phathack Media Manager is starting the text to speech engine"
2) You should be able to install any SAPI engine, including the ones from the PhatNoise software, and they will be available to the software
3) Yes, the DMS Tools works under XP.  Can you post the full error details for me please?  What version of XP is it?

[Dippy]

3) It is only when using the elevated rights shortcut. The error details are:

See the end of this message for details on invoking
just-in-time (JIT) debugging instead of this dialog box.

************** Exception Text **************
System.IO.DirectoryNotFoundException: Could not find special directory 'My Documents'.
   at Microsoft.VisualBasic.FileIO.SpecialDirectories.GetDirectoryPath(String Directory, String DirectoryNameResID)
   at Microsoft.VisualBasic.FileIO.SpecialDirectories.get_MyDocuments()
   at Microsoft.VisualBasic.MyServices.SpecialDirectoriesProxy.get_MyDocuments()
   at StandAloneDMSHackWizard.frmStartupWizard.PopulateDeviceList()
   at StandAloneDMSHackWizard.frmStartupWizard.frmStartupWizard_Load(Object sender, EventArgs e)
   at System.EventHandler.Invoke(Object sender, EventArgs e)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Form.OnLoad(EventArgs e)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Form.OnCreateControl()
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.CreateControl(Boolean fIgnoreVisible)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.CreateControl()
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WmShowWindow(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WndProc(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.ScrollableControl.WndProc(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.ContainerControl.WndProc(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Form.WmShowWindow(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Form.WndProc(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.ControlNativeWindow.OnMessage(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.ControlNativeWindow.WndProc(Message& m)
   at System.Windows.Forms.NativeWindow.Callback(IntPtr hWnd, Int32 msg, IntPtr wparam, IntPtr lparam)


************** Loaded Assemblies **************
mscorlib
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3634 (GDR.050727-3600)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/Microsoft.NET/Framework/v2.0.50727/mscorlib.dll
----------------------------------------
StandAloneDMSHackWizard
    Assembly Version: 2.14.0.0
    Win32 Version: 0.0.2.14
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/StandAloneDMSHackWizard.exe
----------------------------------------
Microsoft.VisualBasic
    Assembly Version: 8.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 8.0.50727.3053 (netfxsp.050727-3000)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/Microsoft.VisualBasic/8.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll
----------------------------------------
System
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3634 (GDR.050727-3600)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Windows.Forms
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3637 (GDR.050727-3600)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Windows.Forms/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Windows.Forms.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Drawing
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3639 (GDR.050727-3600)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Drawing/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Drawing.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Runtime.Remoting
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3053 (netfxsp.050727-3000)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Runtime.Remoting/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Runtime.Remoting.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Configuration
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3053 (netfxsp.050727-3000)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Configuration/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Configuration.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Xml
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.3082 (QFE.050727-3000)
    CodeBase: file:///C:/WINDOWS/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xml/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xml.dll
----------------------------------------
PhatUnzip
    Assembly Version: 1.3.3.0
    Win32 Version: 1.3.3
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/PhatUnzip.DLL
----------------------------------------
VorTechS.DMSTools
    Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 2.0.0.0
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/VorTechS.DMSTools.DLL
----------------------------------------
DMS
    Assembly Version: 1.0.0.1
    Win32 Version: 1.0.0.1
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/DMS.DLL
----------------------------------------
UsbEject
    Assembly Version: 1.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 1.0.0.0
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/UsbEject.DLL
----------------------------------------
PhatDriveSnapshot
    Assembly Version: 1.0.0.0
    Win32 Version: 1.0.0.0
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/PhatDriveSnapshot.DLL
----------------------------------------
Bass.Net
    Assembly Version: 2.4.4.1
    Win32 Version: 2.4.4.1
    CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/PhatHack/PhatHack%20DMS%20Tools/Bass.Net.DLL
----------------------------------------

************** JIT Debugging **************
To enable just-in-time (JIT) debugging, the .config file for this
application or computer (machine.config) must have the
jitDebugging value set in the system.windows.forms section.
The application must also be compiled with debugging
enabled.

For example:

<configuration>
    <system.windows.forms jitDebugging="true" />
</configuration>

When JIT debugging is enabled, any unhandled exception
will be sent to the JIT debugger registered on the computer
rather than be handled by this dialog box.