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Connecting from a real GameCube (Broadband Adapter)

Step-by-step guide for getting PSO Episode I & II Plus (or vanilla Episode I & II) connected to the server from real GameCube hardware via the official Broadband Adapter. newserv treats every retail GC disc as the same Version::GC_V3 client revision, so v1.0, v1.1, and Plus follow the same path on the wire — the only difference is the disc revision sitting in the drive.

Plan for ~20 minutes per player, ~one minute of that on the server side (Josh adds your IP to the allowlist). After the first setup the console remembers your ISP profile, so future sessions are just "power on → Online".

If you're on Dolphin instead of a real console, see client-setup-dolphin.md. On a Batocera Linux machine running Dolphin, see client-setup.md.

Before you start

You need:

The BBA was the rarest official Nintendo accessory at retail and stays surprisingly expensive on the secondhand market (~$80–$150 in 2026). There's no homebrew substitute — the GameCube's serial port is a proprietary pinout and PSO doesn't accept other network paths.

Step 1 — Send your public IP to Josh

Until your home/network's public IP is in the server's allowlist, the GameCube's DNS lookup of PSO's hardcoded Sega hostnames (e.g. game04.st-pso.games.sega.net) will silently get NXDOMAIN. Josh runs terraform apply and you'll be in within a minute. Don't skip this step.

Step 2 — Install the Broadband Adapter

  1. Power the console off and unplug it from the wall. The BBA pulls power from Serial Port 1; don't hot-swap.
  2. Flip the console upside down. You'll see two covered slots on the bottom labeled SERIAL PORT 1 (closer to the front) and SERIAL PORT 2 (closer to the back). The BBA goes in Serial Port 1.
  3. Pop the Serial Port 1 cover off (it slides out with a fingernail).
  4. Align the BBA's connector with the port and press firmly until it clicks. There's only one orientation.
  5. Plug the Ethernet cable into the back of the BBA. The other end into a free port on your router or switch.
  6. Power the console back on.

If the BBA doesn't sit flush, double-check you're on Serial Port 1 (not 2). Serial Port 2 is the same physical connector but PSO ignores it.

Step 3 — Configure PSO's network settings

The Plus menu wording is described here; vanilla Ep I & II uses the same screens with minor text differences.

  1. Boot PSO with a memory card in Slot A.

  2. At the title screen, press START.

  3. Select ONLINE GAME.

  4. PSO will tell you it's creating a fresh PSO Network Info file on your memory card on first run. Let it.

  5. The "Hunter's License" notice appears — select Agree to continue.

  6. The first time, you'll be taken straight to Network Configuration. (On later boots, choose Edit ISP Settings from the Online Game submenu to come back here.)

  7. Create a new ISP profile — name it anything you like (e.g. "PSO Josh"):

    Field Value
    Use DHCP Yes
    Primary DNS 54.173.68.119
    Secondary DNS leave blank (or set to 54.173.68.119 too)
    Use proxy No
    PPPoE No

  8. Save the profile back to the memory card.

Why this works. newserv runs its own DNS server on UDP 53 on the public address. PSO's online code only ever resolves a handful of hardcoded Sega hostnames (game04.st-pso.games.sega.net and friends). Pointing the console's Primary DNS at the server makes those lookups return the server's IP instead of NXDOMAIN, and from there PSO opens a normal TCP connection on port 9103 just like it would have in 2003. No HTTPS, no certificates, no patches — PSO V3 was a plain-TCP protocol.

Step 4 — Register your account

Back at the Online Game submenu, choose Game Start (or Connect on vanilla). PSO will:

The first time you connect from a brand-new memory card, PSO walks you through entering your Serial Number / Access Key / Password trio:

  1. PSO will show the "In order to play PSO Episode 1 and 2 online, you must purchase a Hunter's License." notice — select Agree.
  2. Enter the Serial Number Josh gave you — a 10-digit number from your HUNTER's License paper (or the one Josh assigned for this server).
  3. Enter the Access Key — 12 characters, same source.
  4. Enter the Password — up to 8 characters. Save it to the memory card when prompted so you don't have to retype it every session.
  5. Game Certificate Confirmation — verify and press Yes.

If you see "Welcome to PSO Josh!" in a yellow text box in the lobby, you're in.

Step 5 — Subsequent sessions

After the first run the console remembers everything. The fast path is:

  1. Power on with the PSO disc and your memory card.
  2. Press START → ONLINE GAME → Game Start.
  3. PSO reads your ISP profile and saved login from the memory card, connects, and drops you in the lobby.

No re-entering passwords, no DNS reconfiguration. If you ever change networks (e.g. you take the console to a friend's house), you'll need the new public IP allowlisted and the new local network needs to be DHCP-capable — but the saved ISP profile keeps the DNS setting, so nothing else changes.

Troubleshooting

Symptom Likely cause Fix
The Broadband Adapter could not be detected at the Network Configuration screen BBA not seated, or in Serial Port 2 instead of 1 Power off, reseat the BBA in Serial Port 1, power back on
(No.100) You are banned from this server. newserv's DNS returned a blackhole address (your public IP isn't allowlisted) Re-send Josh your current public IP from https://ifconfig.io
(No.102) You could not be connected to the server. DNS resolved correctly but TCP didn't complete — usually a router-level filter on port 9103 outbound, or the server is briefly down Test outbound from another machine on the same network; ping Josh if the dashboard at https://pso.joshkautz.com shows offline
"Could not connect to the network" / DHCP fails Router DHCP pool exhausted, or BBA not getting a link Check the green LED on the BBA — it should be lit when the cable is plugged in. Try a different port on the router
The console finds the server but the lobby shows "Welcome to PSO Josh!" with no name color First-time account, no character data yet — this is the expected state Create a character in the Character Selection menu; the server auto-creates the account on first connect
Disconnects mid-quest with (No.103) The connection has timed out. Wi-Fi bridge / powerline adapter introducing latency spikes the BBA can't tolerate PSO's online code is fragile to >500ms hiccups. Use wired Ethernet end-to-end between the BBA and the router
(No.101) Cannot establish a connection. immediately after the Sega Online splash DNS query landed somewhere that's not our newserv (Primary DNS typo, or your ISP intercepting port 53 queries) Re-check Primary DNS is exactly 54.173.68.119. If your ISP intercepts port-53 traffic (some do), try Secondary DNS pointing at the same address

Notes for the curious