History of the Amiga 'Kickstart' ROM

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2. Amiga Kickstart Roms Download
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The Amiga 1000 computer, released by Commodore in 1985, required a bootable floppy disk named 'Kickstart', which was used to load basic operating system functionality before continuing the boot process from additional disks. This initial boot code would normally have been stored on a ROM chip, allowing for a simpler user experience and less expensive components, but the development team needed more time to finish the software while the hardware had already gone into production. After the Amiga 1000 (A1000), e.g. on models such as the Amiga 500 (A500) and Amiga 2000 (A2000), this functionality was indeed moved to ROM. Even as new ROM versions were released (from v. 1.x to v. 3.x), the 'Kickstart' name remained popular to refer to what would be more accurately referred to as the 'Amiga ROM', or the ROM-resident part of the operating system. As PCs became more popular, the name 'Amiga BIOS' could also be found, although the name 'BIOS' was never used by Commodore/Amiga systems.

Amiga Kickstart ROM Files and Amiga Emulators

To use this core you'll need the following Kickstart ROMs. Rename them to the given name and copy the files to RetroArch system directory. It is critical to use Kickstarts with the correct MD5, otherwise the core might not start. Just put them in retroarch/system/. The Amiga computer, launched by Commodore in 1985, combined superior multimedia technology with ease of use, inspiring millions of the most creative and enthusiastic computer users ever. Amiga Forever is the official Amiga emulator, preservation and support suite brought to you by Cloanto, developers of Commodore/Amiga software since the 1980s.

On many emulation systems, 'ROM' is the word used to refer to games. Not so on the Amiga, where a 'ROM' is the original 'Kickstart' operating system code as released by Commodore-Amiga in the 1980s and early 1990s. Amiga games are commonly referred to as RP9s or ADFs (if you are looking for a specific Amiga game, try and search for the game title followed by 'RP9' or 'ADF').

Broadly speaking, there are two categories of Amiga emulators: those that aim to emulate the Amiga API (operating system functions), such as the AROS project, and those that aim to emulate the hardware at the lowest possible level, such as the UAE and Fellow projects. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages: AROS aimed to be legally unencumbered from the beginning, but never tried to be compatible at the hardware level, while UAE and Fellow are more compatible with the original hardware, but they depend on the original Kickstart ROMs, which are not freely distributable. A hybrid approach (being worked on, but not yet available) would probably bring the best of both worlds, i.e. maximum compatibility for software that 'bangs the hardware', as was common in the Amiga days, and a ROM replacement that is completely independent of third-party claims, while also being possibly faster than the original.

In addition to the ROM (the 'Kickstart'), all Amiga systems require a set of operating system files (named 'Workbench' in Cloanto's Amiga Forever) in order to function. A 'Kickstart ROM' or 'Kick ROM' alone is not enough to boot into a functioning system, although some games and demos come on disks which include minimal operating system (or OS-replacement) functionality. The CDTV and CD³² also require a second ROM (called the 'Extended ROM').

Amiga Forever is the go-to place to get legit Kickstart, though you can also get 3.1.4 from Hyperion because legal drama. Out of sheer confusion I ended up with files from both. PiMiga comes with an open source ROM, but for best experience a legit Amiga ROM is best.

Cloanto's Amiga Forever

If you are reading this page, you are probably interested in the best possible way to easily run thousands of Amiga games, which are now available from legal download sites. In this case, one would have to mention the Amiga Forever package from Cloanto, which not only tightly integrates with (Win)UAE, (Win)Fellow and AROS, but also includes games, demoscene productions, a search-engine and database, auto-updates, and a lot more. While you might be able to find the individual files online, configuring the emulation is not a simple task, and Amiga Forever makes running a game (or an original Amiga system configuration) as simple as a mouse click, while also helping you find and run more games, and keep the various emulation components up to date. Sophisticated title authoring features are included for power users, which make it possible to describe and configure Amiga content in a durable way.

Cloanto has been an Amiga developer since 1986, and has been officially publishing the Kickstart ROMs and other OS files in Amiga Forever since 1997, which helped keep Amiga emulation legal in difficult years (the topic was quite debated in the late 1990s). They even had a license to the Amiga patents. By supporting Amiga Forever you not only get a quality package, but you support the ongoing efforts of a long-time Amiga friend and contribute to the growth of legal Amiga emulation efforts.

Downloading Amiga 'Kickstart ROMs'

If you are wondering 'Where can I find a Kickstart ROM?', the short answer is Amiga Forever. Different ROMs which are required for the Amiga emulation environment to boot into a functional operating system and then play games and run other Amiga software are included and preinstalled in Amiga Forever for Windows.

Amiga 'Kickstart ROMs' for Android

On Android systems, Amiga Forever Essentials for Android installs official Amiga ROMs and some additional disk images in a way that is autodetected by Amiga emulator apps for Android (e.g. UAE4Droid, AnUAE4All, UAE4All2, Omega 500). These are the 512 KB system ROM files (256 KB ROMs won't work on many mobile emulators) to run Amiga OS versions 1.2, 1.3, 2.04, 3.0 and 3.1 in emulated computers like the Amiga 500 and Amiga 1200. So if you are searching for 'Amiga 500 Kickstart 1.3' or 'kick.rom' or 'kick13.rom', or for a ROM with MD5 hash 192d6d950d0ed3df8040b788502831c2, Amiga Forever Essentials for Android is the answer that is both legal and easy to use, as it requires no manual configuration work.

Amiga Kickstart Roms Download

Different Versions of Amiga Forever

Amiga Forever comes in different versions:

• Express Edition - A free download for Windows that can play back a lot of Amiga content
• Value Edition - A basic commercial package for Windows, which not only supports the Express Edition content, but also provides unlimited access to all Amiga games and applications that run on the 1.3 ROM and operating system (i.e. about 75% of games)
• Plus Edition - Includes additional preinstalled content, support for all ROM and OS versions ever released by Commodore-Amiga (1.x to 3.x, including support for WHDLoad, AmiKit and AmigaSYS), other items of historical interest, and non-Windows software (e.g. KX-Light)
• Premium Edition - Same content as the Plus Edition, plus two DVDs featuring more than five hours of video footage
• Amiga Forever Essentials for Android - Unlocks the full potential of the best Amiga emulation apps for Android

Additional Information

Also see:

Keywords: Amiga, Kickstart, Kickstart ROM, kick, kick rom, kickrom, download, torrent, ROM, Amiga Forever, Amiga ROM, Amiga ROMs, Amiga Kickstart, UAE, WinUAE, Fellow, WinFellow, emulator, emulation, emulators, amigaz, kick13, kick31. Amiga, AmigaOS, AmigaOne, Powered by Amiga, Kickstart, Workbench, the Boing Ball logo, the slanted A logo, the rainbow checkmark logo and the Amiga model identifiers are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Amiga Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

(cloned from https://www.software-by-mabe.com/blog?3&catid=2)
Links and inline-notes, both displayed in red, has been added to this guide after cloning.
See also:
Burn Damn ROM Burn

Burning your own Amiga ROMs (EPROMs)

01/26/2019 | Amiga | Amiga ROM AmigaOS

With the release of the latest AmigaOS version (3.1.4) the package you could buy included ROM images to be used for either maprom (depending on your accelerator card tool support) or for burning it to a ROM.

Maprom is probably preferred, because it’s more flexible, but not always possible. For instance the A3440 card can’t do maprom. Or if you have no accelerator at all you can’t do maprom either.

Which leaves only a few options. Either you can buy the ROM, have someone burn it or burn it yourself.

Here I want to show how it works to burn it yourself.

What you need:

– an EPROM programmer. I have chosen the low cost GQ-4×4 USB programmer.

– to program the EPROMs used in an Amiga you have to get a 16-Bit 40/42 pin ZIF adapter board for the burner:
ADP-054 16 Bit EPROM 40/42 pin ZIF adapter

– an UV eraser, which can erase the EPROMs, in case something goes wrong.

– then you need EPROMs. The types used in A500/A600/A2000 are 27C400. I found the following to work which can be ordered in eBay: AMD27C400

– for burning ROMs for A1200/A4000 you need 27C800 / AMD27C800 roms, two of them to burn one ROM.

– and certainly a ROM image you want to burn.

Sometimes there are good offers at Amazon or eBay for a complete package (except the EPROMs).
You shouldn’t pay more than €150 for the GQ-4×4, the adapter board and the eraser.
(https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B011HVON3A/)

Here is a picture of the device with attached adapter board with an EPROM inside.

Then you need to download the software for the burner. That is a) the burner software itself named “GQUSBprg”. The latest version as of this writing is 7.21.
And you need the USB driver 3.0.

Can be downloaded here: http://mcumall.com/store/device.html

When you connected the burner and installed the software we can start.
Now open the burner software. Make sure that there is no EPROM put in.

1. first step is to select the device, or the EPROM to burn.

Make sure you choose either AM27C400 or 27C400.

2. Next we’ll make a voltage check to see if the burner has all voltages in order to properly burn the EPROM.

I found that while you can attached a power supply on the burner it is not required. The USB provides enough power.

3. Load the ROM image into the buffer.

When you load the image make sure you choose .bin (binary).

!!! This is important, or otherwise the programmed ROM won’t work.
After you loaded the ROM image, you have to make sure to swap bytes.
This can be done in the ‘Command’ menu of the software.
Check first by selecting the “Buffer” tab. If you find some readable text in the beginning of the buffer, you need to byteswap it.

4. Now you have to put in your EPROM into the ZIF slot.

Make sure it sits tight and doesn’t move anymore.

Amiga Kickstart Roms Download

5. Make a blank check to see if the EPROM is empty.

6. When the EPROM is blank we can write it.

When the write process is finished it’s done.

You can take out the EPROM and put it into the Amiga and it should work.

Some notes:
Partly this whole process of writing the ROM was a real pain because the GQ burner would just stop writing at some address. And in fact I had to get the package replaced including the adapter board.

I had first tried it in a virtual machine (VMware Fusion on Mac) but this doesn’t work for some reason as the GQ programmer detaches and re-attaches to the USB bus on some of the operations and that doesn’t seem to be working reliably in a VM.

Commenting on my own post:

The Amiga 4000 can only use 512k EPROMs, hence only 27C400 will work.
The Amiga 1200 can also use 27C800 (1MB).

The byte-swap, if your ROM image is already byte-swapped, then you don’t need to do this here.
Some ROM images, which are ready to burn have this already.
However, if you want to burn ROM images that are used in maprom or UAE, then you have to byte-swap.

07/15/2019 | Manfred |

Resources

Making a custom kickstart 3.9 ROM
Guide: Create and Burn a custom Kickstart 3.9
AmigaOS 3.9 Kickstart and Patches Guide
Classic Amiga Wiki – Kickstart 3.9
Help making Custom Kickstart rom
EEPROM on A1200?
Making a custom kickstart 3.1.4 ROM
Remus and ROMsplit to create your own 3.1.4 KS

Amiga Kickstart Roms Pack

Amiga Kickstart Roms Download Free

Willem EPROM programmer
GQ-4X User’s Manual
Software and USB-driver download
27C400 EPROMs (for A500/A600/A2000 and A4000 ?)
27C800 EPROMs (for A1200 only ?)