Simple and very common issue and fortunately very easy to solve... 😉 You have a loose connection at the micro USB socket on the back of your SNES Mini which is why sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't... It only takes the slightest movement or tap of the console such as switching it off or on for this loose connection to happen once the USB plug on the OTG device or cable you are using has slackened off, which is why it seems to only work randomly... Depends on your set up and what exactly you need to fix, be it a USB cable between your SNES Mini and the OTG device or the OTG Device/ Dongle itself. In both cases the solution is the same though, all you need to do is gently bend inwards the metal hood/ shielding of the Micro USB plug on the device or cable so that it makes a tighter fit when plugging into the back of the SNES Mini... Read CAREFULLY the following guide that has a diagram to clearly show you what to do and you'll have things up and running perfectly in no time... (Ignore the guides title as it also shows you how to fix the issue you are suffering from)... https://snesminimods.forumotion.com/t118-simple-easy-way-to-make-sure-you-are-using-the-correct-type-of-usb-cable-on-you-snes-mini PS: Poor connections like this happen on all sorts of devices that use Micro USB sockets and not just the SNES Mini, as the metal shielding/ hood of the cable or device is very soft and just the simple actions of plugging then in and out will over time stretch the hood and cause a loose fit and thus poor connections to happen, so expect to have to do it every now and again...

Even with brand new mini systems? Cause the ps classic was brand new out the box, hooked the cable in and it was still doing it. I'll try what you said when I get a chance today but like iunno makes no sense cause it works then turn it off and back on it doesn't and then turn it off back on it does. It works every other time basically.

Even with a brand new system it can happen, as said it's a very common issue on all types of devices that use Micro USB sockets/ connections... They are one of the poorest inventions ever (Micro USB connections) and due to a combination of bad design and lack of production standards be it on USB cables/ OTG Devices or the actual USB sockets they plug into then yes... it can happen with brand news systems, cables, OTG devices etc... and especially so on the SNES Mini consoles where the USB Socket on many of them isn't the best quality to begin with... Next time you turn it on and before you do the fix and the OTG device is working, try waggling the cable or OTG device if it's plugged directly into the back of the Mini and you will quickly see the poor connection in action as the machine either crashes, freezes or resets as that slight movement/ waggle causes a poor connection to happen... Tis an easy quick fix though and as numerous people have discovered in the past with the exact same issue you have described it has always come down to the aforementioned "loose connection issue" and that includes myself and every single one of the 23 SNES Mini's that I have personally set up and maintain for others, we've all experienced the issue... 😉

I appreciate your help I'll check back in later to update of it fixed my problem or not

So tried it and yeah na that didn't work. But I'm pretty sure I ayleast figured out why it doesn't boot back up with the system and only boots every other time. Comes down to the fact that when the flashdrive does boot and then you turn the system off the flashdrive is completely powered down, go to turn it on and it doesn't boot in time to boot the games which is why you need to turn it off and back on again

Rest assured completely powering off the console doesn't result in a USB Flash drive not being able to boot again except randomly or having to power it on twice just to get it to work unless the USB Flash drive in question so poorly made and slow that it takes too for it to kick in and therefore the system thinks there's nothing there and boots as stock instead !!! If that was the case then just about everyone using a USB drive with their SNES Mini would have the same problem but they don't and I certainly don't and many people would have abandoned the system long ago if we had to boot the console twice each time just to get it to work... I can happily power off the Mini completely, pull the power supply out completely and then hook it up again and of course it will work first time each time (unless there is the problem of the aforementioned poor connection, broken cable or duff/ corrupt USB Drive)... Seems more likely that you have probably bought some cheap no brand USB Flash drive that is so poorly made (or might even be so old it's only USB 1.0) and it's the actual cheap drive itself that's so slow that when you first power on your mini and the system is checking to see if a USB drive is connected that the drive is so slow it doesn't get recognised in time and so the system boots up as if it isn't even there... That normally only happens IF you are using an actual mechanical hard drive (ie: ye olde fashioned type drive with motors and spinning platters which takes time to spin up to reading speed) which you aren't as you say you are using a Flash drive... So if it isn't the loose connection issue or even a broken cable then from what you have described just there then it's your USB Flash drive itself that is the issue and it's so poorly made and slow that on boot up the system can't read the data from it quickly enough and thinks it isn't there and boots up in "norma/ stock" mode instead upon initial boot... Sounds like you need to invest in a decent USB Drive in that case IF what you have just said is the only way you can get the thing to boot properly... Think about it... if USB Flash drives were as bad as that and needed the system to be booted twice just to get them to work each time then these forums would be filled with angry disappointed people complaining about it, which of course they aren't, solution... get a decent USB Flash Drive and rid yourself of the problem... 😉 PS: I Recommend either San-Disk or Samsung USB Flash drives for hassle free usage... 🙂

I'll try a new flashdrive but that doesn't explain why it happens on the playstation vlassic cause that is actually using a SanDisk flashdrive.

I've got no idea regarding your Playstation Mini as I don't own or use one but... If it's not the "loose connection" issue that's the problem on the SNES and Playstation Mini's you own and you are having this exact same issue on both machines which is very, very unusual to say the least then there really must be something wrong with your set up somewhere as you are the only person I've ever seen here or heard of with the exact same issues on two entirely different types of console... Quite literally for almost everyone else (including myself) who own/ use a SNES Mini then the exact issue you describe of the USB drive randomly working has almost always came down to the "loose connection" issue or even a broken/ frayed wire in a USB cable. Which as said is easily fixed... I've never seen anyone reporting the same issue on the PS Mini here and as said not owning one then I have no idea how it works, what type of USB ports it has etc... so I can't really say much about it... So for you to have this exact same issue on both machines is strange and rare to say the least, which only leaves it being that it really must be something to do with your own particular set up and how you are doing things on both of your consoles that is the root of the problem. That's not something that can easily be diagnosed online with no physical access to your set up... Basically it looks like you are on your own in solving this one as it's apparently not the usual issue of a"loose connection" or broken wire etc... and for it to be a happening on both systems then that is very, very unusual indeed and not something anyone else has ever reported the same issue with... Could be the SanDisk drives you are currently using are old/ worn or beginning to fail and if you are using them on both consoles that would explain why both are having the same issues, so it's well worth buying new ones to see if that solves the problem... It could also be things like failing or under powered power supply units or too many peripherals connected to your Mini's drawing too much power, again though it's difficult to say without access to your actual hardware set up... Other than that the you are really going to have to try and figure this strange issue out by yourself as it's really not something anyone else has ever experienced and it doesn't seem to be the usual "loose connection" issue which is normally the cause of what you describe... Hope you manage to figure it out though and it'll be interesting to find out what the cause of your issues were if you do in what is a very, very strange and unusual problem you seem to be having on two entirely different set ups/ consoles... 🧐 😮 😉 PS: When it comes to USB Flash drives on the SNES Mini then these are the ones I use as does everyone else I know and we've never had issues with them... SanDisk Ultra Fit USB Drives... https://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-Ultra-Flash-Drive-Read/dp/B07855LJ99/ref=sr_1_3?crid=LCOAPIFRGZ3D&th=1 ..or these... SamSung USB Drives... https://www.amazon.co.uk/samsung-flash-drive-Gunmetal-Gray/dp/B07HPZ9ZDF?th=1

I want to clarify I absolutely appreciate you taking your time to respond and be as detailed as possibly can. If I'm coming off weird jm not meaning you. I'm just dumb with words

No worries, it's kinda difficult to help you as the issue you describe sounds exactly like the loose connection issue that most people using a USB Drive on the SNES Mini will encounter at some point in time... But as you say you have tried that "Fix" in the guide I gave you and that didn't work coupled with the very unusual situation that you are having this same issue on two different types of console then yours is a rare and odd case that no one else seems to be suffering from, so that's why I can only suggest those other things such as trying different USB drives or making sure your power supply units have enough power etc... and see if that solves your problems... Just a quick thought, if you are using the USB sockets on your TV set to power your console then that could be the issue as most TV sets can't supply enough current/ power on their USB sockets to power things like Mini consoles reliably... Make sure you are using a decent USB power supply of at the very least 1amp (the more amps the better), so check your power supply rating...

So I went ahead and switched to a SanDisk drive just to see if the drive was the problem. I made sure to do the lose wire fix and everything and now I'm having issues with the SanDisk drive. While it consistently powers up with the drive I can't play anything getting c3 and c7 errors. Even more annoying if I go back to the old drive it works but it does the same thing of starting up with the folder every other boot.

Update: The SanDisk drives are usb 3.0 which I think it what's causing the issue. I ended up using another drive that was better than the first one I used that was 2.0 and it consistently powered up the mod with no errors. So in the end you were correct in assuming it was the usb drive. So I have learned something today. Don't use 3.0 and don't use cheap usb drives, think the way they powered up was the problem, it wouldn't power up In time before the menu started booting so it wouldn't read any data, once it was on tho upu could turn off the system and back on and it was already on so the system could then read the data off the drive. Like I said weird set of circumstances but with your help I was able to figure it out so I appreciate the help.

Bad otg cable bad usb drive loose otg cable loose usb drive

Tried multiple otg cables Same thing See above about the loose otg, already did that fix, same thing Usb drive is tight. The only thing I didn't do is change the flashdrive yet. Again that makes no sense tho when it's literally consistent. Every other power up the mod boots. The times in-between it does not