---
title: Basic Usage
slug: basic-usage
icon: {"faIcon":"fa-solid fa-circle-info"}
createdAt: 2025-01-19T19:36:20.184Z
---

# First Time, Step by Step

1. Plug your card in to Slot 1 or Slot 2 of your **PlayStation 1** or **PlayStation 2** console.
2. Power up your console. The "**MemCard PRO**” logo will appear on the OLED display.
3. The **MemCard PRO** will then load a **VMC** and display its name on the display. The first time you power up the card, “**MemoryCard1**” will be created on your storage device, and it will be loaded and displayed on the **MemCard PRO** OLED display (see fig. 1). Depending on the system you plugged the card into, either “**PS1**” or “**PS2**” will be shown on the display.
4. As soon as your game launches, it will detect the Memory Card. In-game usage is the same as any normal Memory Card, which means you can save and load games as you’d normally do. If you launched a game on your **PlayStation 2** console, the game's ID and name will be displayed on the OLED display and a unique dedicated virtual memory card will be created for that game.
5. Each **Virtual Memory Card (VMC)** provides up to **8 channels** of extra virtual cards. You can think of each channel as an extra whole memory card that you can use in your games. Each channel will provide storage for the preconfigured size and depending on the console this may be **128K (PlayStation 1) **or **8 / 16 / 32 / 64 / 128 MB (PlayStation 2)**
6. You can switch channels using the buttons on the device, or through the WebUI. Most games support memory card hot- swapping, and the **MemCard PRO** simulates the hot-swapping action every time you change a Channel or VMC.
7. To go to the next channel, you can press the right physical button on the **MemCard PRO**, or the "next" button through the WebUI
8. To go to the previous channel, you can press the left physical button on the **MemCard PRO** or the "previous" button through the WebUI.
9. In order to cycle through the available **Virtual Memory Cards**, press and hold the right physical button on the device. The next VMC will be loaded.

# The Display Explained

The OLED display of the **MemCard PRO **has a column of status icons that depict the current status and activity. These are:

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1. **Console Activity: **This icon shows the active console mode. When it animates data is being exhanged with the system
2. **WiFi Status Icon: **This icon shows the current state of the WiFi Radio on the **MemCard PRO. **When an icon with an X is shown, the **WiFi **Radio is OFF. When an icon with a **dot with waves either side **is shown, the **MemCard PRO **is in **Access Point (Setup) Mode. **When bars are shown, the WiFi is connected and the number of solid bars show how strong the connection is.
3. **Currently Selected Channel: **This shows the Channel currently selected. Each channel represents a full memory card and is assigned to the main name (either detected via GameID or a Generic Virtual Memory Card). Channels are from 1-8.
4. **GameID Display: **Shows the current **GameID **of the mounted Virtual Memory Card. This maps to the **directory name **on your microSD card. For Generic VMCs this will be "**MemoryCardx" with x being a sequential number.**
5. **Name Display: **This is a scrolling marquee that shows either:
   1. The detected game name through the **GameID database,**
   2. The Custom Assigned name through the **WebUI**
   3. The Generic VMC name if no name has been assigned