Homebrew Hard Bricked 2DS

[digidiot]

Hello! I have a large problem.
So last summer, I tried to homebrew a Standard 2DS with IronHax
I am still very very new to this as of now though.
So eventually I end up taking the SD card out, and throwing it away.I replaced it for whatever reason.
I didn't realize I still had the homebrew on it, I guess.

So in early April, I wanted to play Animal Crossing on my DS just to revisit my town, and its bricked.
The SD card is brand new and I haven't been able to get my files on there.
I have no idea how to fix it and I need help URGENTLY because quarantine is killing me.


Thank you, and I know I am an idiot.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

Hello! I have a large problem.
So last summer, I tried to homebrew a Standard 2DS with IronHax
I am still very very new to this as of now though.
So eventually I end up taking the SD card out, and throwing it away.I replaced it for whatever reason.
I didn't realize I still had the homebrew on it, I guess.

So in early April, I wanted to play Animal Crossing on my DS just to revisit my town, and its bricked.
The SD card is brand new and I haven't been able to get my files on there.
I have no idea how to fix it and I need help URGENTLY because quarantine is killing me.


Thank you, and I know I am an idiot.

What does the 2DS do? What kind of brick is this? Please describe the situation a little more.

 

[digidiot]

What does the 2DS do? What kind of brick is this? Please describe the situation a little more.

I'm not sure what type of brick it is, but I'm pretty sure it's hard bricked because I tried Up+L+R+A and pressed the power button and it did nothing

Also, when I try to boot it, the power indicator blinks and then turns off.

 

[E1ite007]

Download and put both of the files in the .zip here on the root of the SD.
Let's begin with the basics.

 

[digidiot]

Download and put both of the files in the .zip on the root of the SD.
Let's begin with the basics.

I put Luma 3DSX and the boot file on it and its still doing the same thing.

 

[E1ite007]

I put Luma 3DSX and the boot file on it and its still doing the same thing.

Try to turn on your console while pressing the Start button.
Check if a menu like this appears:

 

[digidiot]

I tried to do it and it's still doing the same thing.

 

[E1ite007]

I tried to do it and it's still doing the same thing.

Shit, just if you want to be sure, try the same but with the Select button. It should start the chainloader.
Anyway, let's check your SD card (courtesy by @TurdPooCharger):

Copy everything off your SD card, reformat it in FAT32 + 32 KB cluster size with either Windows File Explorer or guiformat, and full Write + Verify the empty card in H2testw to check if it's fake or faulty.

Come back with the results, and let's see what is the next step.

 

[digidiot]

Shit, just if you want to be sure, try the same but with the Select button. It should start the chainloader.
Anyway, let's check your SD card (courtesy by @TurdPooCharger):
Come back with the results, and let's see what is the next step.

My result said test finished without errors.

 

[E1ite007]

My result said test finished without errors.

Wait just a sec.
You installed Ironhax, but did you installed CFW?

 

[digidiot]

Wait just a sec.
You installed Ironhax, but did you installed CFW?

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that... I think I got Luma and maybe CIA.

 

[Kwyjor]

So last summer, I tried to homebrew a Standard 2DS with IronHax

Ironhax hasn't worked since 2015! What exactly were you doing?

The more you can say about exactly what you did, the more likely someone will be able to help you.

 

[E1ite007]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that... I think I got Luma and maybe CIA.

Luma3DS is on the SD card so it should be working now if the system's NAND is working and boot9strap was installed. The .cia files are the extention for excecutables on the 3DS ecosystem.
Ironhax was a secondary exploit, so it couldn't install CFW since never, and it hasn't work since 2015 like @Kwyjor specifies.
Unless you remember if you had a primary exploit from sooner in the 3DS life-span, my guess is that the problem is by hardware, maybe the WiFi module detached from the motherboard by a hit or something like that.

 

[digidiot]

Ironhax hasn't worked since 2015! What exactly were you doing?

The more you can say about exactly what you did, the more likely someone will be able to help you.

I'm dumb, a quick Google search and I remembered it's SteelHax. I must have got my metals confused haha. I don't remember too much, except I downloaded CFW like Luma, CIA and FreeShop

 

[Kwyjor]

I downloaded CFW like Luma, CIA and FreeShop

FreeShop stopped working in 2018! If you can't remember what you did, then it will be difficult to help you.

Luma can only be used by following a specific installation process that starts with running the boot9strap installer. If you didn't do anything like that, then you don't have CFW.

 

[E1ite007]

I'm dumb, a quick Google search and I remembered it's SteelHax. I must have got my metals confused haha. I don't remember too much, except I downloaded CFW like Luma, CIA and FreeShop

Steelhax isn't a primary entrypoint, so it's not the way you could've installed CFW.
If you have CFW installed onto your console, you should have followed one of the next methods: Seedminer, ntrboot, Soundhax, or you did a hardmod.
If none of the later sound familiar to you, then your problem possibly isn't about CFW, but instead your system isn't booting 'cause physical damage. It could be as easy as the WiFi module detached from the motherboard (in the first revision of the o2DS) or as expensive as the ribbon cables of the camera being damaged, or even as difficult as the NAND chip being death or even the whole mobo.

 

[digidiot]

Steelhax isn't a primary entrypoint, so it's not the way you could've installed CFW.
If you have CFW installed onto your console, you should have followed one of the next methods: Seedminer, ntrboot, Soundhax, or you did a hardmod.
If none of the later sound familiar to you, then your problem possibly isn't about CFW, but instead your system isn't booting 'cause physical damage. It could be as easy as the WiFi module detached from the motherboard (in the first revision of the o2DS) or as expensive as the ribbon cables of the camera being damaged, or even as difficult as the NAND chip being death or even the whole mobo.

I remember using seedminer. Here is the tutorial I followed

 

[Kwyjor]

I remember using seedminer. Here is the tutorial I followed

Yes, that tutorial only provides you with steelhax. It does not install b9s or Luma. (This is why most people on this board and elsewhere advise against following video guides, because they are often WRONG.)

If that is the tutorial you followed, then your 3DS is exactly the same as it was before you changed your SD card. You probably have a more serious hardware problem, like @E1ite007 suggests.

 

[VictorMoreno015]

I remember using seedminer. Here is the tutorial I followed

I just read this whole post and watched that video.
It seems you didn't install CFW and you didn't do anything that would cause the 3DS to be bricked.

However I believe I might know what the problem is. When you turn on the 2DS does it make a "pop" as soon as it turns off?

Also a word of advice DO NOT follow video guides no matter what. They get outdated incredibly quick and can give you the wrong files and there are some cases of the uploader tampering with the installation files that can get your console bricked. Make sure to follow https://3ds.hacks.guide/ instead as it is always updated whenver a essential file gets updated.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

That guy on YouTube has multiple videos. (And I don't like them)

@digidiot If you really installed something back in 2018 (as indicated by mentioning Freeshop) it is probably hard to remember what exactly you did and what video you used. One thing is sure: Not the one you linked since this is from December 2019. You mentioned Luma and Freeshop; there must have been more than userland homebrew like in that video.

From the hardware side the old 2DS is more robust than the other models – no hinge, no folding, no movement and less ribbons.

What I can say about O2DS and disconnected hardware from my own experience is the following:

• It turns on normally without outer cameras connected
  
• It boots without the screen unit (video connector) as long as the backlight is connected
• Digitizer/touchscreen are not important either and I doubt it checks for the microphone

I didn't try what it does without the WiFi chip – and will certainly not disassemble my only and perfectly working O2DS for testing this. If it behaves like older DS(i) models and the O3DSXL the blue LED should stay on with the screens black and nothing more when the WiFi chip is loose.
==============


What I want to say: Before diving into hardware troubleshooting (if you do not clearly hear a popping sound), please do some more from the software perspective.

I put Luma 3DSX and the boot file on it and its still doing the same thing.

It is the boot.firm file that is responsible for starting a 2|3DS with custom firmware. Try more than one SD, make sure it is working by verifying with h2testw, F3 or F3X.

Put boot.firm and nothing else on FAT32 formatted (32KB cluster sitze) SD cards. If you are sure that you used a Seedminer based method we know you have the latest version of B9S and should be able to use latest Luma3DS. https://github.com/AuroraWright/Luma3DS/releases/tag/v10.1.3

If you did something completely different (and earlier) it might be an early version of B9S (use Luma v7.1 boot.firm) or even A9LH (use Luma v7.0.5 arm9loaderhax.bin)

Try looking inside the SD reader. Any dirt? Any bent pins?

Good luck!

Edit:
Hard shutoff (hardware problem) mostly turns off the blue LED instantly – while B9S not finding a valid boot.firm lets the LED fade off. The difference is not extreme but noticeable.