Hacking Dump DLC problem

arfgh · Jul 13, 2021

Hey there guys... just have a problem dumping a DLC.
The title is Everspace Stellar Edition, that comes with the expansion/DLC Encounters on disc. After installed on the 7.55 console, main menu is saying that Encounters is installed. After update the game i tried to dump all content to use it on my 6.72 console and for my surprise on it the main menu is saying Encounters is not installed.

Again on the 7.55 console i see in 'mnt' the content of the disc that has 'ADDCONT' folder with a little 'ac.pkg'.over 600 KB. I tried to launch the game and via ftp i did check the sandbox looking for the game folders '-ac' there in order to dump the dlc, but nothing is mounted there with the name '-ac'.

So i am guessing how to dump that dlc in order to have my fpkg backup of it to be played on the 6.72 console....

help !

SapphireExile · Jul 13, 2021

If I'm understanding this right, you're saying the game has the DLC on disc, it's visible over FTP via the mountpoint, but whatever you're using to dump it isn't dumping the DLC package with the rest of the disk?

godreborn · Jul 13, 2021

how did you build the pkg? was the param.sfo one for addcont? did it error when installing? check in the addcont.db in system_data/priv/mms to see if it's even listed there. you can open it with sqlite browser.

arfgh · Jul 14, 2021

in the sandbox folder, there is no '-ac' folder to dump any dlc. but in the disc content i can see ADDCONT and 'ac.pkg' into. So i figure the disc installs that dlc unlocker, but following informations about how to dump a dlc, there is no possible in this case because there is no '-ac' mounted folder in sandbox.

godreborn · Jul 14, 2021

I don't think unlockers work with dlc. they only work with themes.

arfgh · Jul 14, 2021

so then how to dump that little dlc unlocker that is on the disc ?
because the game i dumped is saying the dlc is not installed, but yes when used the original disc.

godreborn · Jul 14, 2021

never heard of a dlc unlocker being on the disc, but you should be able to use the dlc if you dump the dlc with the legit disc via ftp, create an addcont param.sfo with the sfo orbis app, then drop the contents (not the ac folder) into the orbis window. it's almost idiot proof, because it will warn you about at least the param.sfo (if it doesn't exist or is in the wrong place). you may also need the icon0.png which is in the user partition user/appmeta/addcont/content id iirc. if you don't do that with themes, the theme will install, but it will error. it will still work, but you'll have no preview image.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

you won't need the unlocker if you do the whole thing manually. it will just be one pkg.

CybeX · Jul 14, 2021

I've come across this situation with Mutant Year Zero. Where I installed the game to rip it and after ripping it found I didn't have the Seed of Evil DLC expansion. When I checked the original folder there was no ac- folders to rip for the DLC content. The DLC said Disc Version on it, when I viewed it from the information menu.

For my case the content was part of the base disc install and the DLC was unlockable. I have a feeling this is the case for you too.

I think @godreborn is suggesting a manual way of what I'm going to explain.. and I'm maybe over complicating it but...

I used psDLCIndex, which is broken right now because the Playstation Store got restructured, so you can't use the automatic option to find and build all the DLC for a tittle. Though.. there's another script with this tool called ez_dlc.py that works if you have the direct DLC link from the store you are trying to make a fake unlock package for.

So if you want to try it the way I did you would.

Locate the URL for the DLC on the PlayStation Store. I searched for EVERSPACE Encounters and found it
Copy that URL
Locate psDLCIndex (just search for it on google and the Github should show up)
Install Python if you don't have it installed
Uncompress psDLCIndex to a folder
Open a command line and navigate to the psDLCIndex folder
Run Requirements.bat which will install all the needed Python tools
Run ez_dlc.py https://URL_OF_DLC_ON_STORE

This should then find the content and build a package for you, you'll find it under fake_dlc_pkg/CUSA####. Take the package and install it and see if the content is now unlocked and works.

I think the nice points of doing this is it scrapes the picture and so on from the store for the fake DLC package.

godreborn · Jul 14, 2021

does that still work? for example, psdlc (the gui app) no longer works, and I think it does something similar. the reason it no longer works is due to an update to the store to stop it from working. I don't know if it was intentional or not.

CybeX · Jul 15, 2021

godreborn said:
does that still work? for example, psdlc (the gui app) no longer works, and I think it does something similar. the reason it no longer works is due to an update to the store to stop it from working. I don't know if it was intentional or not.

Yes I agree, the automated lookup of DLC for a title ID no longer works in it due to the store update.

If you have the direct URL of the item you want a fake package for the ez_dlc python script that's provided with it appears to still works. I remade the DLC just now for Mutant Year Zero and it created a proper fake DLC that unlocked it for my rip of the game when I tested it again.

Curious if anyone else tried this with the direct URL and using the ez_dlc.py script. I know the developer is still trying to figure out an automated way of scaping the store to pull up all the DLC for a title. When I figured out this method still works with using the URL for the DLCs.. I thought about maybe the developer should move to having a community driven database.. where users could post the URL of a DLC and what title ID it is for.. and kind of map it out as a community effort. His tool could then scape that database for all the URLs and build them. I see he has his discord ID posted maybe I should bounce the idea off of him.. but this would take a lot of effort and they could just change the URLs at some point and break it again.

arfgh · Jul 15, 2021

but in this case the dlc unlocker, 640kb, is in the disc. Clearly the game installation also installs that dlc unlocker. And the game dump seems to miss that little part, for that reason my fake pkg, once installed in other console is saying that 'Encounters DLC' is available on the ps store, instead 'Encounters DLC' is installed....

godreborn · Jul 15, 2021

I don't know if @CybeX 's method is similar to the method with psdlc. psdlc, downloading unlockers--the sizes varied. however, if you create an unlocker based on content id, which is how you can unlock any theme (never seen one that failed in over 60 of them), the unlocker is 128KBs always. having said that, this may be dissimilar. if his method doesn't work, try combining both unlocker and content using the method I mentioned. there's a more detailed tutorial in @KiiWii 's aio guide. I don't mess with dlc much, but I've made several theme unlocker and content combined into one pkg theme packages. the only difference iirc between themes and dlc is the param.sfo type. everything else is the same, since they're both -ac (addcont) pkgs.

godreborn · Jul 15, 2021

maybe @KiiWii knows why this is, but I just had a thought. whenever I was unlocking official themes with an unlocker, I'd have to install theme, unlocker, then theme again. I can't recall if you can just do unlocker, then theme, but if you don't do that, the theme will disappear. it will be unlocked if you do it the way I mentioned above (any theme will be). I don't know if that could be happening with your dlc or not.

arfgh · Jul 15, 2021

guys i cant understand the program PSdlc.exe
i tried several times to add the title ID manually, because the program is showing nothing. And with the title id, the program is saying that i have to put the title id in the good format. And i just did it, but it isnt working at all.

But anyways, how can we know the title ids ? for example. Other original disc i had that is 'The Long Dark'. That game also come with some DLC unlocker in the disc, exactly same as Everspace Stellar Edition. So after dumping that game, the same happen on the 6.72 console, the fake pkg backup is saying that the dlc is not installed 'Skybound Insiders'. In this case the original 'ac.pkg' on disc size 1 MB so it is again a DLC unlocker.

So how to achieve the operation on PSdlc.exe ?

godreborn · Jul 15, 2021

psdlc no longer works after an update to the ps store. that's why I asked about that other app (think it was a python script). you can easily get the title id by opening the pkg with pkg viewer. it will even tell you content id (has title id in it).

KiiWii · Jul 15, 2021

godreborn said:
maybe @KiiWii knows why this is, but I just had a thought. whenever I was unlocking official themes with an unlocker, I'd have to install theme, unlocker, then theme again. I can't recall if you can just do unlocker, then theme, but if you don't do that, the theme will disappear. it will be unlocked if you do it the way I mentioned above (any theme will be). I don't know if that could be happening with your dlc or not.

You’re right it definitely used to be 1 then 2 then 1 again, but I think I saw recently on DKS themes with just two steps.

godreborn · Jul 15, 2021

you can do it in one step actually if you combine them by dumping the theme after it's been unlocked.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

@KiiWii , when I was dumping themes for some people, one person had a two pkg theme/unlocker, but he said the second pkg would error upon install. I found the problem was that the second pkg didn't contain the icon0.png, which I retrieved from the first pkg, then lumped them together to make one pkg/unlocker.

arfgh · Jul 15, 2021

^^ that person was me

it was Firewatch theme

CybeX · Jul 19, 2021

I worked with @arfgh and using the method I listed. We created a fake unlocker which unlocked the content that was on the disc. So manually making the param.sfo and your own fake package would have also worked.

I was asked to provide better instructions of the process by arfg, including how to install Python. I figured I'd just post it all here so other's attempting this could follow.

My example is in 64bit Windows 10, the tools in this script are Windows executables.

Install Python 3

Go to https://www.python.org/downloads/ and download the latest version of Python 3
Run installer for Python
Be sure to click the Add Python 3.# to PATH (this will allow python to be ran from any folder on the command line)
All other default settings are fine, click Install Now
You maybe prompted to allow the app to be installed, click ok/yes to allow.
At the end an option to Disable path length limit is provided, I suggest doing this option.

Using ez_dlc.py from psDLCIndex

Go to their github https://github.com/GarnetSunset/psDLCIndex. Click on the green Code Download button and select Download Zip
Unzip the folder to a easy to remember location on your hard drive. I placed mine on C: drive and renamed the folder to psDLCindex
Open a command prompt by typing command prompt in search bar
Navigate to the psDLCindex folder you unzipped to
Type requirements.bat to install all the required modules using pip.
Now we are ready to use the ez_dlc.py script provided as part of the psDLCIndex pack. This script allows you to past a URL of a DLC from the PlayStation Store and turn it into a fake DLC package. Open the PlayStation Store for the region of your game.
Search for the Name of the game or the name of the DLC. In this case I searched for Everspace and found the Encounters DLC.
Open the DLC page and copy the URL. In this example it's

Where you should see your title ID of your game listed.
Go back to your command line and enter ez_dlc.py URL
Navigate to the psDLCIndex folder, which now should have a fake_dlc_pkg folder. Once you open this folder you will see the title ID of your game. Open that folder to find your fake pkg.
Install the package on your PS4 and if the content is just an unlockable it should now appear when you run the game.

Repeat steps 7-11 if you need to download additional DLC.

godreborn · Jul 19, 2021

I'm honestly surprised this still works. goes to show that sony may be the most incompetent of the big three considering you can download this stuff using a pc. there's absolutely no requirement that it be a ps4. wtf was sony thinking to make this mistake four times in a row? possibly even five if the ps5 is the same.