PS VITA / PS TV VitaShell v1.60 - USB Storage Support for PSTV user's & New Theme in this anticipated update!!!

UPDATE v1.61 (03/18/2017): Small update to provide several fixes
(03/17/2017): The much anticipated release of VitaShell v1.60 that contains USB Mass Storage Support for the PlayStationTV (PSTV) aka VitaTV has been released. Also announced is the winner of the VitaShell Theme Competition, with the new theme available in this update. This update provides some additional tweaks and cleanup as PSTV user's will no longer have to see the battery indicator going forward from v1.60. This AIO File Manager for the Vita & PSTV continues to pack in creditable functionality for HENkaku users on Vita firmware 3.60. The full details of this update and also a history of logs has been provided along with some additional details from creator and developer of VitaShell, TheFlow.

New VitaShell: Electron by Acemad (Competition Winner)​

VitaShell v1.60 Notes Contest Winner (Theme) History Additional Details

• 
  Update (03/18/2017) - VitaShell 1.61 Changelog
  
  • Fixed database corruption crash by inheriting 'calendar', 'mms' and 'mtp' when mounting USB ux0:.
  • Fixed bug where insufficent memory dialog appeared on uma0:.
  • Fixed bug where pressing triangle crashed if unsafe mode was disabled.
  
  VitaShell v1.60 Changelog (03/17/2017):
  
  • Added ability to mount uma0: and ability to use uma0: as ux0:.
  • Added ability to mount game card as usb device.
  • Added possibility to refresh the livearea.
  • Added scrolling text for long filenames.
  • Added 'Sort by' option to context menu (R trigger combo removed).
  • Added 'Electron' theme by Acemad, the winner of the VitaShell theme contest.
  • Added theme selector.
  • Improved property dialog animation.
  • Fixed text editor bugs.
  • Fixed bug where USB cable wasn't recognized.
  • Fixed bug where VitaShell left to livearea after deleting the updater.
  • Removed battery icon in status bar for PSTV.
  • File statistics are now inherited when copying.
  • I/O operations speed will now be showed in KB/s.
  • Made control smoother.
  
  How to use an USB flash drive as Memory Card on a PS TV
  
  • Format your USB flash drive as exFAT or FAT32.
  • Launch VitaShell and press /\ in the 'home' section.
  • Select 'Mount uma0:' and attach your USB flash drive. You can now copy stuff from/to your USB stick.
  • Once 'uma0:' is listed under the partitions, press /\ again and choose 'Mount USB ux0:'.
  • Your USB flash drive is now acting as a Memory Card.
  • To sync all your apps on your USB flash drive, press /\ and choose 'Refresh livearea'. This will NOT refresh PSP games.
  • If you wish to revert the patch, press /\ and select 'Umount USB ux0:'.
• 
  Contest Winner: New VitaShell Theme (by Acemad)
  
  This theme was submitted in the official competition thread over at wololo.net, checkout other themes and submissions within that thread link
  
  ​
  via Acemad
  

  My third entry to the competition.
  
  This one took lots of effort / time to complete than I had imagined. Lots of experiments were made before settling on the final looks. Anyway, It's inspired by the flow of electrons through electronic circuits, it's not too dark nor bright, kinda neutral. Subtle and unobtrusive design focusing on the essence of VitaShell without too much unnecessary frills.

  
  
  
  ​
  More screens, info and download here : https://github.com/Acemad/VitaShell-Themes/tree/master/Electron Theme
  
  

  I recommend installing the theme and seeing it on a vita

  

  (screenshots don't do it justice)
  Working on this was a great experience !
  Thank you all and good luck !
  
  EDIT : Updated theme to support 12H clock format. Thanks to razneck for the heads up !

  

  
  
  EDIT 2 : Bonus LiveArea theme to go with this theme :
  
  

  ​

  
  More info and download from the link above.
  Thank you

  

• 
  
  History of VitaShell Changes:​
  
  Changelog 1.51
  
  
  • Fixed bug where 'Please wait...' was shown instead of a specifc USB message.
  • Fixed VPK installation crash.
  • Fixed bug where 'theme.txt' was always resetted.
  • Updated to newest libftpvita.
  
  Changelog 1.50
  
  
  • Added USB mass storage transfer support.
  • Added RAR archive support (by Mayoshiroi).
  • Added coredump viewer.
  
  Changelog 1.43
  
  
  • Added taiHEN config.txt reload option available in molecularShell.
  • Changed default HENkaku spoofed version to 3.63.
  • Fixed bug where you couldn't exit the application.
  Changelog 1.42
  
  
  • Added a brand new settings menu which is accessible by pressing START (design by WesleyPolicena).
    This adds the ability to disable auto-update and power options have been added where you can
    reboot, enter standby or turn off your device.
  • Fixed local date being incorrect.
  • The name 'molecularShell' will now be displayed if it's runned as molecularShell, otherwise 'VitaShell'.
    This will help differentiating the two applications, as molecularShell is from now on a safe homebrew
    and doesn't have the full range of features like VitaShell. Additionally in molecularShell you can see
    the HENkaku settings section which are hidden in VitaShell (note that both still share the same eboot.bin,
    only the flag is different).
  Changelog 1.41
  
  
  • Added ability to sort files and folders by size and date. Press R to switch sort method.
  • Added the long desired 'Properties' feature. You can also check whether an eboot.bin is safe or not.
  Changelog 1.4
  
  
  • Added group RW permissions on files and folders when moving.
    Safe homebrews like RetroArch will now recognize files and folders
    that you have moved from 'ux0:video'.
  • Added scanning for dangerous functions in packages.
  • Added possibility to choose compression level.
  • Fixed time information in zip archives.
  Changelog 1.31
  
  
  • Touching the screen on dialogs would abort the process, fixed.
  Changelog 1.3
  
  
  • Added ability to compress files and folders into a zip archive.
  • Added scanning for unsafe fself's and imports.
  • Added lrc support for audio player by Mayoshiroi.
  • Added partition used/total size information, thanks to littlebalup.
  • Added 'Install folder' by soarqin.
  Changelog 1.2
  
  
  • Added ability to export photo and music files ('More' -> 'Export media').
  • Added battery percentage to system information (thanks to littlebalup).
  • Added toolbox where more features will have place, by theorywrong (press START).
  • Improved stability for file browser delete operation.
  • Pressing L in the music player will now restart the song if the song is not at the beginning.
  • VitaShell will now remove the unused updater bubble after successful updating.
  Changelog 1.1
  
  
  • Added cover.jpg and folder.jpg as alternative cover image.
  • Fixed ID3 tag parsing.
  • Play and pause icons where swapped, fixed.
  • FTP does now show 'Please wait...' until it has been connected to Wi-Fi.
  Changelog 0.95
  
  
  • Added ability to install update files as .vpk (for Vitamin).
  • Added patch to make .vpk installation appearing as full version instead of test version.
  • Added text editor by BigBoot (WIP).
  • Added 'More' entry to the context menu.
  • Added 'Install all' feature to install all packages available in the folder (by ribbid987).
  • Added 'Calculate SHA1' feature by xerpia64.
  • Added support for ftp promoting for https://github.com/soywiz/vitaorganizer.
  • Fixed 'Move' operation. Now it does integrate into folders and replace files.
  • Dropped GENERAL_COLOR, now all colors are adjustable.
  Changelog 1.00
  
  
  • Added audio player with .MP3 and .OGG support (Press /\ to turn off the display while listening to music. Graphics by Valle).
  • Added changelog to the VitaShell bubble (press /\ or hold the bubble of VitaShell in the livearea).
  • Added ability to resume to the directory you've last visted before exiting VitaShell).
  • Leaving to livearea or suspending the device does no longer corrupt an IO process anymore (while copying things you can now leave VitaShell and resume).
  • Improved text editor and added search feature to context menu (press /).
  • Fixed bug where copying to different partitions didn't work.
  • Fixed network update bug.
  Changelog 0.91
  
  
  • Added automatic network update. VitaShell will now notify you when there's a new update.
    You'll then be able to download it within the VitaShell application and it will update both
    molecularShell and VitaShell to the newest verison.
  • Added text and audio file icon by littlebalup.
  • Updated to latest libftpvita which fixed file size string > 2GB and added APPE command.
  Changelog 0.9
  
  
  • Added possibility to use specific background for file browser, hex editor, text editor, photo viewer.
  • Added files and folder icons by littlebalup.
  • Added charging battery icon by ribbid987.
  • Added sfo reader by theorywrong.
  • Added translation support for turkish (english_gb uses the same id as turkish, fix it Sony!).
  • Updated to latest libftpvita which fixed file size string > 2GB and added APPE command.
  • Fixed bug where copied files and folders of archives didn't stay on clipboard.
  • Allow auto screen-off.
  • System information trigger combo changed to START instead of L+R+START.
    System information can now also be translated, thanks to littlebalup.
  Changelog 0.86
  
  
  • Added dialog box animation and aligned dialog box y to make it look better.
  • Fixed wrong time string for files and folders. Thanks to persona5.
  • Fixed INSTALL_WARNING text crash.
  • Added default files creating.
  Changelog 0.85
  
  
  • Added customization possibility for ftp icon, battery, dialog and context menu.
  • Added random wallpaper feature.
  • Changed location of themes to 'ux0:VitaShell/theme/YOUR_THEME_NAME'.
  • Fixed russian and korean language support.
  Changelog 0.8
  
  
  • Added support for >2GB zip archives (dropped support for 7zip and rar though).
  • Added cache system for zipfs (faster file reading when browsing in zip archives).
  • Added possibility to customize the application's UI.
  • Added possibility to translate the application.
  • Fixed 12h time conversion.
  Changelog 0.7
  
  
  • Ported to HENkaku (support for renaming/creating folders and for analog stick for fast movement).
  • Added custom dialogs.
  • Added graphics by Freakler.
  • Added possibility to use FTP in background.
  • I/O operations can now be cancelled.
  • Removed misc stuff, shader compiler, homebrew loading, PBOOT.PBP signing, network host.
  • Fixed various bugs.
  Changelog 0.6
  
  
  • Fixed size string of files, again.
  • Optimized I/O operations regarding speed.
  Changelog 0.5
  
  
  • Increased homebrew force-exit compatbility and stability.
  • Added network host mountpoint.
  • Added ability to compile shader programs (use the _v.cg suffix for vertexes and _f.cg for fragments).
  • Finished photo viewer. Use the right analog stick to zoom in/out. Left analog stick to move. L/R to rotate and X/O to change display mode.
  • Updated to newest vita2dlib which fixed many bugs with images.
  • Improved 'New folder' by extending to 'New folder (X)', where 'X' is an increasing number.
  • Improved message dialog texts.
  • Limited filenames so it doesn't overlap with the size/folder text.
  • Fixed infinite loop when copying the src to its subfolder by an error result.
  • Fixed FTP client crashes and added support for Turboclient Android.
  • Fixed alphabetical sorting, finally.
  Changelog 0.4
  
  
  • Added experimental feature: Holding START to force exit homebrews.
  • Added battery symbol by Ruben_Wolf.
  • Switched to official PGF font.
  • Changed triangle-menu animation to ease-out.
  • Improved mark all/unmark all feature.
  • Fixed percentage precision in progress bar.
  • Fixed small bug in move operation.
  Changelog 0.3
  
  
  • Added translation support. See translation_readme.txt for more details.
  • Added move ability (only possible within same partition).
  • Added tabulator support in text viewer.
  • Removed 'Paste', 'Delete', 'Rename' and 'New folder' in read-only partitions.
  • Fixed size string of files over 1GB.
  • Fixed alphabetical sorting.
  • Fixed battery percent bug being -1% on PSM Dev Assistant.
  Changelog 0.2
  
  
  • Added ability to sign PSP homebrews.
  • Added sleep prevention when using FTP, deleting and copying files.
  • Added a scrollbar.
  • Added date and time to info bar.
  • Added correct enter and cancel buttons assignment.
  • Added some cosmetic changes.
  • Fixed crash when deleting marked entries.
  • Copied entries now still rest in clipboard after pasting them.
  • The application now cleans itself before launching homebrews.
• 
  
  • Release: VitaShell (A multi-functional file manager )
  • Open Source: Yes (Source Code)
    
  • Developer: TheFlow (Github Page, Official Twitter )
  • Requirements: A PS Vita / PlayStation TV / Vita TV running the HENkaku exploit on Vita firmware 3.60.
    
  • Mirror(s): via psx-place

Downloads VitaShell_1.61.vpk

Source: github.com / twitter.com/theflow0​

 

Cluster sizes and filesystems doesn't matter. For some unknown reason, some mass storage devices are recognizing and others not. Maybe it's some timeouts for start device initializations, I don't know. Use another drive or wait for fix.

 

I can't say for sure but the issue could be related to the usb controllers used by the devices... It is a known issue on the PS3 maybe also on Vita...

Personally I would also avoid using things like Y splitters though..

 

how in the world r u even supposed to use a y cable with the pstv? the device only has one usb port.

 

Would you mind telling me how you formatted your drive exactly? I used the Windows format with default allocation size. I have this drive https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152200 and I am using a USB y splitter for external power and the cable works fine as pc detects it but Vitashell for w/e reason will not. Idk if im suppose ot format it a certain way or not. this is the Y splitter https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003HHK576/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Download AOMEI PA here: http://www.aomeitech.com/aomei-partition-assistant.html
After install check there that your drive have only one partition. Because some hdd cases hide some stuff sometime. Also there check that your drive is using MBR style partition.

 

@pinky Maybe from external source like PC or TV.

@kozarovv The king is only one GParted. ;]

But anyway, it's a good shot. He can i.e have hidden partitions from UEFI/Windows or just bloatware from vendor. I don't know how VitaShell could react on multi partitioned mass.

 

So i updated pstv today and installed a game via sandisk ezglide. When i mounted it the second time i got black screen then when exited out and reloaded i got file corrupt. Is there a way run homebrew and ect on usb but keeping vital files internal. I have a 16 gig sony card thats going to full. And need more room if possible.Thanx in advance

 

So i updated pstv today and installed a game via sandisk ezglide. When i mounted it the second time i got black screen then when exited out and reloaded i got file corrupt. Is there a way run homebrew and ect on usb but keeping vital files internal. I have a 16 gig sony card thats going to full. And need more room if possible.Thanx in advance

I don't have my usb flash drive yet, but this is what I think may be happening. in the app.db, which houses information on the content shown on the livearea, probably shows the usb as ux0: based on what it says in the instructions. it's kinda like how when u install a psn title on an external drive on the ps3, the location shows up as hdd0. in both cases (speculation with the pstv), the drive is remapped. I think if u leave the app folder on the actual ux0 u won't have the issue of something becoming corrupted. u can probably check in the app.db what's going on. I'll check that stuff out once I get my flash drive which should be tomorrow or Saturday or someone who knows for sure and has tested it may chime in about this. since the drives r remapped, I don't think u can make the system think both the memory card and the flash drive/hdd as being ux0. I'd suggest leaving the content on the memory card while copying them to the flash drive/hdd. on my other site, a friend has had a lot of issues with getting the games on to his flash drive. I think he said he could only install on the memory card, then move them over. I'm not sure if that's the case which maybe is ur issue? ur installing to the memory card first or to the flash drive/hdd?

 

@pinky think i might of been out of space on my thumb drive, tried another one and got it to work, and corrupt file issue was indeed because it had mounted and there want any data for it to load. can i use cma to make a back up of my $ony card and then mount thumb and back up? TBH, sounds lame but i dont want to take the chance of losing my WOff save. have lost more than a few and i fear i will give up next time lol.
or any other way. guess i could just reformat the vita and just use the thumb and keep vita empty (using save manager to backup WOff
, my ass probably get confuse and reformat again cause it aint perfect, lol

 

@pinky think i might of been out of space on my thumb drive, tried another one and got it to work, and corrupt file issue was indeed because it had mounted and there want any data for it to load. can i use cma to make a back up of my $ony card and then mount thumb and back up? TBH, sounds lame but i dont want to take the chance of losing my WOff save. have lost more than a few and i fear i will give up next time lol.
or any other way. guess i could just reformat the vita and just use the thumb and keep vita empty (using save manager to backup WOff
, my ass probably get confuse and reformat again cause it aint perfect, lol

I'm glad u figured out the problem.

that's a good question. u could try backing up the card. if u do a cma backup, it back ups certain folders from ur0 (the internal memory card) as well. this includes saves as well which r located here: ux0:/user/00/savedata . I also thought about formatting my memory card, and using a small one while using a larger flash drive. then, selling the memory card. I'll try the cma backup method. try going clicking on cma and going to ur memory card to see how much memory is being measured. anyway, I'm going to try that once I get the flash drive.

 

@pinky
Any recomendations for thumbstick? Or even a hdd? Was looking at a sandisk ulta dual 128 gig) its usb 3.0 so not sure if that matters.

 

If device is randomly disconnecting it is probably power issue.

PSTV uses both: ur0 and ux0 (I don't know how it looks like on normal Vita). On ur0 are stored user vital data, and on ux0 only optional. Before You mount uma0 as ux0, copy all data from ux0 there. After remounting uma0 to ux0, PSTV will use i.e pendrive as memory card, so everything is installing there and app.db also point to ux0. When You unmount pendrive, console will not find any stuff installed after remounting because it doesn't exist on real, internal ux0.

It's good to buy flash on USB 3.0, not because PSTV will use it (because she can't, it's only 2.0) but because such devices are faster.

 

@pinky
Any recomendations for thumbstick? Or even a hdd? Was looking at a sandisk ulta dual 128 gig) its usb 3.0 so not sure if that matters.

this is what I bought since my mother is a member::

https://www.samsclub.com/sams/128g-...128g-a16s/prod20151556.ip?xid=plp:product:1:1

I should have it today or tomorrow.

 

Using a 500gb USB HDD myself used a Y splitter cable with one end in the PSTV and one plugged into my TV USB port. As without that extra 5v the drive just "clicks" and will not be read by the system.

 

In a USB pendrive, the flash memory access speed by the included USB controller plays a big part in the overall transfer performance of the device. Some keys have better performance because they use a more efficient controller & they are usually more expensive as a result.
The USB 2.0 standard offers a max transfer speed of 60Mb/s whereas USB 3.0 offers 625Mb/s.
On average, the maximum speed at which USB 3.0 devices can transfer files goes from 45Mb/s up to 100Mb/s depending on the devices, it is well under the standard's limit.
Obviously, a device that can transfer at 90/100Mb/s uses a much more efficient usb controller to access the flash memory data.
Note that a cheaper USB 3.0 device with maximum transfer speed around 45/55Mb/s will not be better than a higher end USB 2.0 device which can transfer around 55Mb/s, within USB 2.0 limitations.

The transfer rates given above were measured by transferring average to big size files. The rates get much lower when transferring a lot of small files as always.
Also, the transfer rates promised by manufacturers are nearly always well above what the device offers in practice.

 

I"ve now gone memory card less. it took a bit of work to get just the right apps installed and to modify the app.db to use my modded files (i.e. icons, backgrounds, themes), but I did it. now, I'm going to make a backup of it, then reformat the memory cards I have and sell them.