Homebrew [NDS] Forwarder CIAs for your HOME Menu
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NOTE: Support for the SuperCard DSTWO is currently broken.
Remember the old days of having forwarder channels on your Wii that boots games from your USB drive or SD Card?
Ever wanted a way of launching full DS games like digital titles in your 3DS HOME Menu? Well now you can!
In this turorial, you can make forwarder CIAs that boots NDS ROMs from an SD Card (or if you want, a DS-Mode flashcard).
Requirements
3DS:
- Decrypt9
- A CFW that patches TWL_FIRM (Luma3DS)
- A CIA installer (FBI, DevMenu, etc)
- An SD Card (or microSD card for N3DS)
- (Optional) DS-Mode flashcard (aka, Slot-1 to microSD card adapter)
The recommended flashcard is DSTT.
If you want perfect game compatibility, get the SuperCard DSTWO. The downside is that it drains your system battery faster.
If you have a flashcard that works with @Apache Thunder's NTR Launcher, fell free to request it here.
Be sure to specify which build you're using (Normal or Alt), and if RESETSLOT1 is set to 0 or 1 in "sd:/nds/ntr_launcher.ini".
Compatible:
Acekard 2(i) (DSi-Enhanced games, including newer NTR games, don't work.)
Acekard RPG
DSTT
DSTT Advance
Galaxy Eagle
M3 DS Real
M3 DS Simply (uses <2GB microSD card)
R4 DS (Original Non-SDHC version, uses <2GB microSD card)
R4 SDHC Snoopy
R4 SDHC RTS LITE (Dual-Core should work) (2015 and 2016) (www.r4isdhc.com)
R4 SDHC Upgrade (www.r4i-sdhc.com)
R4i3D (www.r4i3d.com)
R4iDSN
R4i Gold
R4i Gold RTS (www.r4ids.cn)
R4i-SDHC (www.r4i-sdhc.com) (Normal and RTS versions)
R4iTT (www.r4itt.net) (Purple card may be incompatible)
SuperCard DSONE
SuperCard DSTWO (Normal and Plus versions)
Untested:
R4i3D NEW (Use R4iDSN template and pack)
Partially compatible:
Ace 3DS+(Game compatibility is bad, so saving/loading save file results in crashing.)
Gateway Blue Card (Game compatibility is bad, so saving/loading save file results in crashing.)
EX4DS (Game compatibility is bad, so saving/loading save file results in crashing.)
R4iLS (Game compatibility is bad, so saving/loading save file results in crashing.)
Cards with www.r4isdhc.com.cn (Game compatibility is bad, so saving/loading save file results in crashing.)
Incompatible:
CycloDS (i)Evolution (Can autoboot ROMs, but it works differently than other flashcards.)
(i)Edge (Unable to autoboot a .nds ROM)
R4 Gold Pro (www.r4i-gold.com/www.r4i-gold.me) (YSMenu (not the forwarder process) bricks the card)
R4i3D (2012)
R4 Infinity Dual Core
R4 SDHC
R4 SDHC Dual-Core <2014 (www.r4isdhc.com) (YSMenu (not the forwarder process) bricks the card)
Windows/Linux/Mac:
- Latest Java version
- Linux: JavaFX
SD Card users: See what games work and what doesn't work:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1M7MxYQzVhb4604esdvo57a7crSvbGzFIdotLW0bm0Co/edit#gid=0
Download a pack for your card (forwarders won't run without it):
3DS SD Card
and let's not forget:
Forwarder3-DS (Current version: v2.9.3)
also:
For hacks/translations of DSi-Enhanced games, find a fixed banner here. Also includes animated banners for DS standard games.
Source code for the templates (not needed):
https://github.com/Robz8/NTR_Forwarder/
For SD card
- Extract what's in "for SD card root" to the root of the 3DS SD card.
Extract what's in "for Slot-1 microSD" to the root of the flashcard's microSD card, and (if folder exists) "for 3DS SD card" to the root of the 3DS SD card.
What will be in each pack for loading ROMs:
Original R4/M3 Simply - WoodR4 & YSMenu
DSTT/R4i Gold/R4i-SDHC/R4 SDHC Dual-Core/R4 SDHC Upgrade/SC DSONE, Acekard 2(i)/M3DS Real/R4i-SDHC 1.4.x - YSMenu
Acekard RPG, Ace 3DS+/Gateway Blue Card/R4iLS/R4iTT, R4iDSN/R4i Gold RTS - WoodR4
Part 1: Decrypt9
- Launch Decrypt9 in HBL or as a Luma3DS payload.
- Select "Gamecart Dumper Options".
- Select "Dump Cart" (full or trim). This will dump any cart's ROM to your 3DS' SD card, whether it's NTR (DS), TWL (DSi), or CTR (3DS).
- After dumping is finished, press B.
Part 2: Forwarder3-DS
View attachment 72425
- Select the target card you're using on the left.
- Check "Automatically set ROM path" to set the path to where your ROM is at in the SD Card or flashcard.
- Click the folder on the top-right, and find the ROMs on the SD Card (or flashcard) you are using, or drag and drop them into the window.
- If you're playing a hack/translation of a DSi-Enhanced game that has it's banner/title edited, find the banner for the game below the Forwarder3-DS link, right click on the game, click "Import banner", and click on the banner to use.
- Click on a game to do some edits.
- Click the shuffle button
if the TID is red. Clicking the shuffle button will randomly change the TID to one in the whitelist. Not doing so will not give you a .NDS/.CIA.
- Be sure to make a list of TIDs you're using for your forwarders.
- If using a homebrew ROM, clear and type in the game title.
- Click the floppy drive button to generate the forwarder CIA!
- Copy the CIA to your 3DS SD Card, or put it in SocketPunch for network installation.
- Finally, install the CIA and launch it. If using EmuNAND, install it to both Sys & Emu NANDs.
You are now done!
After you extract the pack for your card, you can edit "sd:/nds/ntr_forwarder.ini" and change one of the settings. This isn't possible for Acekard RPG, R4 DS, and R4i Gold RTS.
- NTRCLOCK: If set to 0 or if A is held, the DSi boot screen will appear instead of the normal DS splash, and TWL clock speed is used, so lags begone.
- DISABLEANIMATION: If set to 1 or if B is held, the DS/DSi boot screen is skipped.
- HEALTHSAFETYMSG: If set to 1, the boot screen's H&S message will appear on the bottom screen. If set to 0, the bottom screen stays white with no H&S message.
Here's a video tutorial and a forwarder in action! (This was before we were able to run retail ROMs from SD Card.
Credits:
@Olmectron, for making Forwarder3-DS.
Me, for creating the Auto-Boot ROM Path setter for DSTT/R4i Gold/R4i-SDHC/R4 SDHC Dual-Core/R4 SDHC Upgrade/SC DSONE, Acekard 2(i)/R4iTT, and DSTWO.
@ahezard, for making the R4/M3, Acekard RPG, R4iDSN/R4i Gold RTS forwarder templates, and nds-bootstrap.
@Apache Thunder, for recreating the DS/DSi boot screen.
@MasterCheese, for helping me getting the Ace3DS Plus, Gateway Blue Card, and cards with www.r4isdhc.com.cn to work.
FAQs:
Q (Linux users): Why is Forwarder3-DS not starting?
A: Install JavaFX.
Q: I'm not getting a CIA, just a .nds file. Why?
A1: Make sure your ROM's .nds filename is short, and/or create Forwarder3-DS folder in your hard drive (or flash drive) root, and run the .jar file there.
A2 (Linux and MacOS users): Execute chmod +x make_cia in the terminal on the .jar file's directory, so that make_cia gets the needed rights to be executed.
Q: How do I update the forwarder templates?
A: The app will automatically update the templates if it's set, or you can click the button next to the Forwarder3-DS title, and click "Update templates".
Q: How do I get rid of lag on games?
A: Hold A before the DS boot screen appears, or open "sd:/nds/ntr_forwarder.ini" and set
NTRCLOCK to 0 to use TWL clock speed.
Q: Why aren't some of my forwarders appearing?
A: You went over the 40 DSiWare game limit. Copy any DSiWare/forwarder you don't use, to your SD Card, and delete it from System Memory.
Q: Will the game I'm playing show up in Activity Log?
A: Yes it will!
Q: What games are DSi Enhanced (have animated banners)?
A: Look here.
Q: Why am I taken to a ROM selection menu?
A: Make "Games are on SD card" was checked, and you dragged and dropped the ROMs from the flashcard's microSD, to Forwarder3-DS' window.
Q: Will this load DSi enhanced games in DSi mode, including DSi exclusive games?
A: Nope, but maybe in the future, since we can run commercial/retail ROMs from the 3DS SD Card.
Q: Why is the banner/title blank?
A: Follow step 5 of the Forwarder3-DS section.
Q: How do I use cheat codes?
A: Use this program.
R4 DS/M3 DS Simply, R4iDSN/Acekard RPG/R4i Gold RTS:
Q: Why are some of my games getting white screens?
A: The forwarders are based on an outdated version of Wood, which had it's source code found. The version used has bad compatibility with some games. Open _wfwd/wfwd.ini, and set useLatestWood to 1.
DSTT/R4i Gold/R4i-SDHC/R4 SDHC Dual-Core/R4 SDHC Upgrade/SC DSONE, M3DS Real:
Q: Why does my game freeze sometimes?
A: The game has Anti-Piracy checks. YSMenu is supposed to fix that, but won't for some reason.
Q: Launching the CIA just takes me to the ROM selection menu. How do I fix that?
A: Delete or rename any existing YSMenu.ini file in the YSMenu and root folders/directories.
Q: How do I skip to the ROM selection menu?
A: When booting YSMenu, hold B to go to the ROM selection menu.
Q: Why am I getting:
[Rom Loading failed]
load rom errcode=-
Please reset system.
A: Look at the YSMenu error code guide.
but does it work for all games cus i cant get it to work for legend of zelda phantom hourglass
No. If you're an SD card user, there's a compatibility list in the OP, where you quoted it.
So... I've been having an issue where I download everything from the 3ds sd card pack, put it where it should be and it says the bootstrap is not recognized.
I am a New 3DS user who is trying to make a SM64DS fowarder and load the game off my SD Card.
I've tried redownloading it 5 times and it still can't recognize the bootstrap for some reason.
I am a New 3DS user who is trying to make a SM64DS fowarder and load the game off my SD Card.
I've tried redownloading it 5 times and it still can't recognize the bootstrap for some reason.
Thanks! The bootstrap is now recognized. The only problem is my game gets a White Screen for some reason :/
It says this on the debug menu.
SCFG_ROM ARM9 3
SCFG_CLK ARM9 85
SCFG_EXT ARM9 83000000
SCFG_ROM ARM7
SCFG_ARM7 data 703
CLK ARM7
SCFG_EXT ARM7 data 187
ARM7
ARM7 data 93a40000
CPU boosted
VRAM boosted
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds
Press start...
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds w
ith 1 parameters
And it's just stuck on there. Frozen.
Last edited by epicmartin7,
Try again. For some reason, bootstrap wants to black screen when start is pressed on the debug screen.
It says this on the debug menu.
SCFG_ROM ARM9 3
SCFG_CLK ARM9 85
SCFG_EXT ARM9 83000000
SCFG_ROM ARM7
SCFG_ARM7 data 703
K ARM7
SCFG_EXT ARM7
ARM7 data 187
ARM7 data 93a40000
CPU boosted
VRAM boosted
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds
Press start...
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds w
ith 1 parameters
Start failed. Error 1
SCFG_ROM ARM9 3
SCFG_CLK ARM9 85
SCFG_EXT ARM9 83000000
SCFG_ROM ARM7
SCFG_ARM7 data 703
K ARM7
SCFG_EXT ARM7
ARM7 data 187
ARM7 data 93a40000
CPU boosted
VRAM boosted
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds
Press start...
Running sd:/roms/ds/ASME01.nds w
ith 1 parameters
Start failed. Error 1
Yes I do.
--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------
Wait... I screwed up. I put down nds instead of ds.
EDIT: I'm sorry for ask your help for this long. It was something so simple and was a small oversight. Thanks for taking the time to help though.
Last edited by epicmartin7,
I hope this isn't a dumb question, but I just tried this out and none of the CIAs I installed are appearing. I definitely don't have 40 DSiWare games. What could I be doing wrong? Do I need to put the DS roms somewhere specifically on the SD card?
Ah, the old "turning it off and on" trick. Trace Memory works flawlessly. Thanks for the quick response!
--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------
One more question, I recall in one of the other NDS bootstrap threads it cautioned saving in certain games with a DS card in slot 1, since there's a risk of the save of the forwarded ROM overwriting whatever card is in slot 1 (if the game card is the same type as the ROM). Is this still the case? Hope that makes sense.
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Hi, I have about 30 forwarders which I made with the Forwarder3-DS app in its 2.8.2 version.
Those were also created by the templates of that time, and they worked perfectly.
Now I want to create another forwarder, but when I opened v2.8.2 of the Forwarder3-DS app the Card model list was empty, so, I downloaded the latest version manually (v2.9.3).
This new version updated the templates used to create the forwarders, and now I can use both v2.8.2 and v2.9.3.
The problem is that the new forwarders created with this new templates doesn't work (they boot the latest played game of my flashcard).
I'm using a DSTwo.
I assume that the new template needs different config files that the valid ones for the old templates, on both 3DS's SD card and Flashcard SD card.
Now the real question is: if I replace the files on both 3DS's SD card and Flashcard SD card, will the old 30 forwarders stop working? If so, is there a way to create all of them again BUT having the exact same Title ID that the older ones? That is just to avoid double entries on the Activity Log.
Thank you very much for this!
Those were also created by the templates of that time, and they worked perfectly.
Now I want to create another forwarder, but when I opened v2.8.2 of the Forwarder3-DS app the Card model list was empty, so, I downloaded the latest version manually (v2.9.3).
This new version updated the templates used to create the forwarders, and now I can use both v2.8.2 and v2.9.3.
The problem is that the new forwarders created with this new templates doesn't work (they boot the latest played game of my flashcard).
I'm using a DSTwo.
I assume that the new template needs different config files that the valid ones for the old templates, on both 3DS's SD card and Flashcard SD card.
Now the real question is: if I replace the files on both 3DS's SD card and Flashcard SD card, will the old 30 forwarders stop working? If so, is there a way to create all of them again BUT having the exact same Title ID that the older ones? That is just to avoid double entries on the Activity Log.
Thank you very much for this!
Last edited by Asdolo,
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